Of Souls and Oceans
by Perfectly Censored
Summary: A cool breeze, the salt air whirling around in spirals and the constant sound of the lapping waves. The crystalline neverending ocean streatching out before the sand. It's a neverending cycle of life and death...
1. Beach Vacation!

Ok No offense to you all that have written Bleach fics….-.- but you guys are truly pathetic. 3 FREAKIN CHAPTERS AVERAGE! I'm sorry…but that's just sad. It's crazy. Well...I was inspired by the lack of chapter to write meh own Bleach fic…so yeah. It may contain some spoilers as to who the characters are and all, but, YOU HAVE NO FREAKIN IDEA HOW HARD IT WAS TO FIND ALL OF THESE CHARACTERS NAMES! And yet…I STILL don't know Rukia's brothers name, which will drive me insane….Oi. And yet…I still need his friends names if I am ever to start this chapter. Man…this is gonna be a loooooong story. Bear with me guys.

Disclaimer: Like I'll ever own Bleach? But…maybe I DO own Ishida-Kun. -swoon- He's sooooo dreamy. -brands him as hers- MINE!

Chapter Uno-mochacho (1) Beach Vacation

Ichigo stared up at his ceiling, wishing that the morning would just come already. He had been restless like this for the past six hours, just staring and listening to Kon snore, like he always had done.

'How long has it been?' He thought to himself as he glanced briefly at the little lion/teddy bear thing. 'What? A month? A year?' His mind continued to wonder as he looked to his closet door, where a certain girl lay encompassed in the comforts of sleep. He turned away from the door, smiling a little, then closed his eyes, hoping that sleep would consume him before dawn broke and his adventures began the next day. He rolled over on to his side, facing his window, looking up at the stars that shimmered brightly on the canvas that they had been painted.

"Will sleep ever come to me?" He asked to himself quietly, as not to wake the others that slept so soundly in the room. He shot a quick glance at the clock and let out a small, muffled moan. "Only 3 a.m.! Only four more hours…I can do this," He said, trying to reassure himself. Ichigo once again closed his eyes, this time, sleep beginning to consume his mind. "That's more like it…" He said as he felt himself relaxing and drifting off into the black void known as sleep.

All the orange haired teen could hear was the faint sound of a buzz as he continued to stubbornly remain in the clutches of sleep. The buzzing gradually began to grow louder until that's all he could hear. He rolled onto his side, falling out of his bed in the process. He landed on the rug with a thud, then groggily pushed himself up and hit the snooze button on his alarm.

"7 o'clock already?" He quietly asked himself, looking at Kon to make sure that the mod was still sleeping, which to Ichigo's relief was. He looked at the packed duffle bag that lay at the end of his bed, already packed and ready for lift off. He moved to go and pick it up, but then noticed that eyes were on them. He could feel them burning into the back of his head as he froze in his spot. He slowly turned around to see that Rukia was awake, her hands on her hips in a motherly like way.

"And why, pray tell, are YOU up so early?" She asked him suspiciously as she took a step towards him.

"I promised to go and play soccer with Karrin today, you have a problem with that?" Ichigo replied, calmly. He knew that he wouldn't have been able to leave with out Rukia being an obstacle, thus forming a reason for him to get up so early.

"Oh really?" She inquired, her voice still hinting suspicion as she looked at the bag. Ichigo nodded.

"Really, now if you'll let me leave, I must meet her at the field. She's most likely already there," Ichigo grunted as he began to push past Rukia, the duffle bag's strap around his shoulder. Rukia grabbed him by the neck of his shirt and let out a sigh.

"You're not lying to me…are you?" She muttered as she held him fast.

"Not at all…." Ichigo replied with a smile as he slipped his shirt off and began to run out of his room. 'Damn…..I've been caught yet again…' he thought as he ran down the stairs, slipped on his shoes, and bolted out the door.

It didn't take long for the black haired girl to realize what was going on before she ran after him. 'Oh Ichigo, you nit witt!' She thought as she followed his leave out of the house. She wretched open the door and looked around. "Where are you…" She whispered as she looked to her right, then to her left. "Come out, come out where ever you are," She sang into the gentle summer breeze.

Just around the corner, Ichigo stood, his back pressed against the wall to make himself as flat as humanly possible. He knew that if he was caught right now, then his life would come to an abrupt end, not like it really mattered of course. He closed his eyes, straining to hear any sound that would tell him that Rukia was on the move. He furrowed his brow in concentration, but suddenly opened his eyes and looked up. Standing on the railing just above him, Rukia had perched herself, looking down at him. Ichigo's face paled as he began to run again, his heart beating in his chest.

"Ichigo….I think you might want to put a shirt on!" Rukia yelled after him as she waved his in the air. "Think of how much of a fool you look! Come back and I'll give it to you!" She continued as she waited for his answer. Ichigo had totally forgotten that he had slipped his shirt back in his room.

"Ah! RUKIA! GIVE THAT BACK!" He yelled back to her as he skidded to an abrupt halt and turned to face her. Rukia gave him a wicked smile as she waved it over her head again. "YOU!" He yelled as he took one step, but knew that it was just another one of her clever ploys. Ichigo scowled at her.

"I'm not falling for it! It's in the middle of summer! Who cares if I have a shirt on, or not!" He reasoned as he turned on his heel and once again began to walk away, smirking a bit. 'Heh…that ought to get her.' He chuckled to himself as he continued to walk down the sidewalk. Ichigo stuffed his hands in the pockets of his shorts as he stared at the pavement, wondering if Rukia would give up so easily, but he already knew the answer to that. He felt a tap on his shoulder as he turned around to find Rukia standing there, his tank top in her hand.

"I just want to know where you're going, just in case," She said as he took the top from her. Ichigo let out a small sigh, knowing that it was pointless to lie again.

"Me and some of the guys from school are heading down to the beach for a few days," He replied as he shrugged his shoulders, knowing what was going to come next.

"What! But what about the Hollows, and your duties! Where are you going to sleep! What am I supposed to do!" She demanded as she stomped her foot on the ground.

"Look, the Hollows can be put on hold for a while. I need rest and relaxation, Rukia. I'm burnt out, what else do you want of me! As for where we are to sleep, we're going to stay in one of the hotels on the beach side, it's called 'The Shining Seashell,' alright? And as for you, go do something other than obsess about the Hollow's, ok?" He explained as a red jeep came speeding up the road, just to skid to a halt beside them. Inside the car were Ichigo's friends, namely Chad, Ishida (-swoon-), Keigo and lastly Mizuiro.

"Hey man! 'Sup!" Keigo greeted as he put the car in park. "Jump on in, we're gonna----KUICHIKI-SAMA!" He exclaimed as his gaze fell on Rukia. She raised an eyebrow as she looked to see who had said her name. She smiled sweetly as she chuckled.

"Well hello, Keigo-Kun. I see you're going along too?" She replied politely as Ichigo grunted and threw his things roughly into the back of the jeep and leapt in to sit next to Chad.

"As I said before, Rukia, go do something relaxing. We'll be back in about 9 days, so you'll have plenty of---" Ichigo was suddenly cut off by Rukia's shouts of protest.

"NINE DAYS! DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH CAN HAPPEN IN NINE DAYS! FOR ALL YOU CAN CARE, THE WHOLE WORLD COULD BE IN UTTER CHAOS, AND YOU WOULD BE JUST LOUNGING ABOUT! I FORBID YOU TO LEAVE, ICHIGO!" Rukia shouted at him as she clenched her fists at her side, her face turning a bit red with anger. She shot him a death glare, as all of his friends faces paled and they seemed to just shrink back. They had never truly seen Rukia so angry before, for they had only seen her as the sweet, gentle girl at school.

"RUKIA! JUST BECAUSE I DON'T OBSESS OVER THOSE STUPID THINGS, DOESN'T MEAN THAT I DON'T CARE! GOD WOMAN! I'M LEAVING, YOU STUBBORN, AND OVERLY OBSESSED DOG! DAD KNOWS WHERE WE'RE GOING AND ALSO THE PHONE NUMBER TO MY NEW CELL! SO SHUT UP, GO BACK HOME AND QUIT YOUR POUTING!" Ichigo yelled, frustrated, back at her. Rukia recoiled from the cold tone he had used and from the loudness of his voice. Her eyes dropped to the pavement as she snapped her mouth shut, tears beginning to weld up into her eyes. Ichigo continued to look at her, he had not meant to make her cry, but he just needed time alone, away from all of the Hallows and what not. The guys just stared at him, their eyes wide, and their faces even paler now. He looked at Keigo and muttered, "Go," to him.

"But shouldn't you---" Keigo began as he looked at Rukia solemnly, then shut his trap because of the look Ichigo had given him. "Ok, ok! I'm going!" He sighed as he put the car out of park and began to drive out towards the beach.

Ichigo sat in the back, the warm wind rushing over his face as he morosely crossed his arms in front of his chest, scowling. "I swear…" He muttered as Ishida looked at him, his icy blue eyes fixed on him.

"You shouldn't have yelled, you know. She's just trying to help," He added coldly as his gaze stayed on Ichigo.

"Shut up, and stay out of this. It's none of your business, so leave me alone, Ishida, before I make you shut up," Ichigo replied, his tone gruff and low.

"I believe he's right, Ichi," Chad chimed in, his booming voice seeming to shake Ichigo to his senses.

"What was I thinking…?" He asked himself as he let out a sigh. For he could swear that she had been crying when they had left. 'I wonder why that was….' he thought to himself as he looked back, knowing that she was already far out of sight.

"Be nicer to her, Ichigo, and you just might learn something," Ishida said as he stared at the passing scenery with great interest. But Ichigo wasn't listening, for he was thinking of the dream he had had just before he had gotten up. Damn, he hated that alarm clock of his.

Rukia watched the jeep speed away, her eyes watery. Had he just called her a dog? Oh this stung. She didn't know that she would care so much about a name, but for some reason, when Ichigo had said it, it made her heart feel as though it had been torn from her body and thrown to the ground. If any other man had said this, she would have just shrugged it off, but she couldn't this time. She just couldn't. Her bottom lip trembled as she began to walk back towards the small house that she had secretly lived in for the last few months. She knocked on the door, hoping that either one of the girls was up, or Mr. Kurosaki. She waited patiently outside the door, then after a few minutes of hearing nothing, she knocked again, a bit louder this time though. Only a few seconds after her second knock, the door flew open and there stood Mr. K, his mouth twisted into a welcoming smile.

"Well, what can I do you for, Missy?" He asked then noticed her eyes all watery and frowned himself, pulling out a tissue and dabbing his own watery eyes. "Oh wretched Gods! What have you done to this beautiful young girl, who has to be no more than 17! Why do you torture her young and innocent soul! Have you sent her to me so that I may lend her a helping hand in love!" He called out to the sky dramatically. Rukia raised an eyebrow then sighed.

"Sorry to disappoint you, Sir, but I am a classmate of Kurosaki-Kun's and I was wondering if you knew where I could find him. He said something about going to the beach at school a few days ago, and I need to ask him a question. Would you please help me?" She asked Ichigo's overly dramatic dad as she crossed her arms over her chest waiting for his reply patiently.

"Oh don't speak now my dear! You're just in denial! I'll help you get through this, don't you worry your little head off! You will be tortured no longer, for your prince has come to save you!" Mr. K continued as he took her by the hands and drug her inside where Karrin and Yuko were sitting at the table eating their breakfast. Karrin rolled her eyes and let out a sigh.

"Dad, let her go. She's not looking for love from you. All she wants is Ichi, which I might add, is not here at the moment. You might try that girl 'Hime's house…she possibly might know where he is," Karrin suggested as she pulled her dad off of Rukia, for he had begun to hug her, weeping still.

"T-thank you, Karrin-San," Rukia said politely and ran out of the door, not wanting to go near Ichigo's father ever again. Rukia looked to her left, then to her right and let out a big sigh.

"Ok….where is her house? This way? Or this way?" She contemplated as she turned right then left over and over again, slightly lost. "Ok…this is the same girl with the brother who had turned into a Hallow. Where was her house? Ah! That's right! This way!" Rukia exclaimed as she took off running to the direction of which Inoue's house was, smiling slightly. Rukia didn't even know why she was trying to go after Ichigo, for in truth, the words he had said to her just before he left hurt her more than any physical wound had. Why was she going to just get yelled at again? She didn't care though, she had to straighten things out with him. She stopped in front of the apartment complex that Inoue lived in and took a deep breath, then let it out again, trying to calm herself. Rukia knew that Tatsuki was bound to be there too, so she couldn't just come out and say why she needed to find Ichigo. She began to walk up a flight of stairs when familiar voices reached her ears.

"Oh this'll be so fun!" One of the voices chattered, a bit higher and tinnier than the other.

"Cool it. It's only the beach," The other said, her voice a bit more gruff and horse.

"Yeah, but think of all the fun we'll have, Tatsuki-Chan!" the first voice replied. Rukia chuckled a little, knowing who the two were long before they met up with her on the flight of stairs that she had just stopped on and listened. Inoue looked at Rukia and smiled.

"Kuchiki-San, what brings you here?" She asked cheerfully as she looked at her, a warm smile on her lips.

"I was wondering...uhhhh...if you knew where Ichigo and the other guys are going. I need to find them quickly…it's important," She elucidated with a shrug. In truth it was important.

"Hai….we know where they are headed. Their going to the beach, an idea they so cruelly stole from us. If you need to find them, then why don't you come along with us? Chi's dad owns one of the hotels there and has already reserved use a few hotel rooms for us. I'm sure one more girl couldn't be a problem," Tatsuki reasoned as she smiled a bit. She began to walk down the stairs again, Inoue following her, and Rukia following her.

"Are you sure? I mean…I really don't have anything packed, or appropriate for this kind of a trip. I'm not sure if I even have a swim suit," Rukia admitted sheepishly as she coughed a little an embarrassed blush appearing on her face. Inoue smiled again and laughed.

"That's ok, you can borrow one of mine, and we can wait for you to pack. We don't mind," She said as she linked her arms with Tatsuki and Rukia, pulling them along with her. "This is going to be so much fun!" Rukia slipped her arm out of Inoue's and began running back to her closet to pack quickly.

"Ok, I'll meet you in 15 minutes in front of Ichigo's house. I live right next to his so, yeah. See ya there!" She yelled over her shoulder to the two girls as she ran towards the house, her mind racing with a number of thoughts. Rukia jumped up through the window into Ichigo's room quietly, then made her way to her "room" of sorts to get some clothes and money packed. She stuffed her purple duffle bag full of shorts, tank tops, short skirts, kapri's and other necessities. (Aka: under garments, tooth brush, hair brush…) She shook Kon awake from his deep slumber by stuffing him in the bag as well.

"Nee-San! What are you doing!" He called out as she hushed him.

"Quiet, Kon. We're going on a trip, so shut up," She whispered to him as she jumped out the window again, landing lightly on her feet, just in time to see Inoue and Tatsuki come around one of the corners. (A/N: Btw, Inoue and 'Hime are the same person. So I may revert back to calling her Orihime. So don't freak out.) She smiled at the two, waiting for them to catch up to her.

"Ok! We're set, right? Hime, can you call Chizuru to let her know where to pick us up?" Tatsuki asked Inoue, handing her a cell phone. Rukia looked at the phone, having a feeling that she was forgetting something. 'Ok…I've got my glove…Kon….what else am I missing?' She thought to herself as she heard Inoue talking on the phone.

"Hi, Chizuru-Chan. Me and Tatsuki-Chan are in front of Ichigo Kurosaki's house, and I hope you don't mind Rukia-San joining us," Inoue said into the phone, but was suddenly cut off by Chizuru's voice.

"Mind! THIS IS GREAT!" Chizuru's voice exclaimed, then continued. "Ok, so I'll be there in like, five!" Rukia chuckled a little as she adjusted the strap on her shoulder so that it hung there more comfortably.

"Thanks you guys…You don't know how much this really means to me," Rukia whispered quietly, looking down at the ground shrugging her shoulders a little. She felt Tatsuki pat her back.

"No prob," She replied with a smile as a black Mustang GT pulled up to stop next to them. The tinted window rolled down and in the drivers seat was Chizuru, sunglasses replacing her regular glasses. She grinned as she chuckled a little.

"C'mon in! I'm not going to bite you. Just throw your junk in the trunk Gals. And Rukia-San, thanks for joining us!" She added with a smile. The girls did as they were instructed and threw their bags into the back, which already had about three bags in there. Tatsuki and Inoue exchanged curious glances to each other, but opened the door to the passenger side to find two other girls sitting there, staring at the others as well, just equally as shocked.

"Chizuru-Chan…you didn't tell us there were more people coming!" One of the girls whispered urgently to the red haired teen. Chizuru chuckled then smiled.

"But I couldn't leave my cute, adorable Hime out! It just wouldn't be the same with out her. Besides, you two really need to meet some new people from my new school, it'll do you some good!" She replied cheerfully as she patted the passengers seat next to her. "Hop on in," She added with a mischievous grin. Inoue looked at Tatsuki nervously as she bent down and moved the seat forward so that two of them could get into the back of the car. Tatsuki and Inoue began to get into the back before Rukia stopped them.

"Wait! I'm smallest…shouldn't I go into the back? I mean…it would be a lot more comfortable…" Rukia suggested as she shrugged, the feeling that she had forgotten something dispersing for the time being.

"No, you'll sit up front. I have to protect Hime from that girl driving. Who knows what that freaky red head will try," Tatsuki muttered as she cast Chizuru a suspicious glance. Rukia let out a sigh and nodded her head.

"A-alright then…if you insist," She complied as the two other girls got into the back and pushed the seat back so she could get in.

"ACHA! YOUR ELBOW IS IN MY BOOB! TATSUKI!" Inoue cried as the car began to move.

"I'm sorry Hime, but there's nothing I can do about it. Live with it an---AHH! GET YOUR HAND OUT OF MY MOUTH!" Tatsuki began to say then was cut off by one of the strange girls hands being jammed into her mouth.

"I told you so…" Rukia said in a matter-of-factly way with a snicker as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Chizuru-Chan! Who are these people?" Inoue asked, though her voice was muffled for some how a shoe had wound up in her mouth. Chizuru chuckled.

"These are my old friends from my former school. Hime-Chan, Tatsuki-Chan, Rukia-San, I would all like you to meet Chei and Ayako," She introduced as she continued to drive.

"Hi…" Rukia said bluntly, letting her façade finally slip in front of the girls that had known her to be nice, gentle, and quiet. She looked out the window, not really wanting to talk to any one.

"Hiya!" Inoue greeted as she leaned forward so she could see the two girls. One of them had thick, brown hair that was plaited behind her back, and her eyes were a deep sapphire blue, as though the ocean had been trapped inside of her. The other girl had shorter raven black hair, which also had some purple streaks through it, that was in the hair style of a page boy. Her eyes were a deep green and seemed to hold much curiosity. The one who had talked before was the brown haired girl, her name was Chei. The other, Ayako.

"Hi," Tatsuki said, though not as enthusiastically as Inoue had.

"Greetings," Ayako said, her green eyes drifting to look at Rukia, curiously.

"Whatever…" Chei muttered as she turned to her window, her chin resting in the palm of her hand. Rukia shot a cold glance at the two. She had a bad feeling about them, they weren't normal, that she knew. Chizuru noticed the sudden silence and began to take charge of a suitable conversation.

"So…Rukia…Hime said that you were tagging along to catch up with Ichigo-Kun…correct?" Chizuru began, dropping the formalities with her friends. Rukia let out a sigh.

"That is correct…" She replied shrugging her shoulders.

"So…why are you after him? What do you want to ask him?" Chizuru prodded as she looked at Rukia curiously for a second then turned her eyes to the road again. Rukia felt all of the passengers eyes upon her and let out another sigh.

"You...wouldn't understand. She shrugged as she looked to her hands which had begun to twist the bottom of her shirt nervously.

"Oh, C'mon! You're among friends! Tell!" She demanded cheerfully. Rukia shot a glance to Ayako, not liking the vibe that she got from the strange girl.

"He just...said some hurtful things before he left and I want to know if he meant them. He shouldn't be on this trip….bad things could happen," She replied mysteriously as she held Ayako's gaze. For some odd reason, this girl really un nerved her.

"I'm sorry, Rukia-San…" Inoue piped in as she put a comforting hand on Rukia's shoulder.

"It's nothing really, the sooner I get this squared away, the better though," She whispered more to herself than to Inoue. "Don't worry about it…" She added as she once again looked out the window, her eyes tired. The last time she had tried to sleep, she had a strange dream. Man...she hated that alarm clock of Ichigo's.

Chapter one done! And now time for title time! Why is Ayako so un nerving? What is this strange dream? WHERE DID MY BANANA'S GO! Eh heh heh heh…what ever. Yeah well….advice…advice. I need to give it to you. Don't laugh at people who break their noses….it will get you in more trouble than you can imagine. -speaks from experience- OK you guys. Well, I'll be writing the second chapter soon. Well R&R, and if you don't like it, STOP READING IT! I've gotten 3 reviews saying what a waste of time my stories are…I'M NOT MAKING YOU READ THEM! Gawd. Ok..well…nighty night! And Till Next Time!

Sakura (P.O.D. ------Peace Out Dude!)


	2. Haunted Hotels

Sup sup sup my fellow reviewers! Hey I'm writing chapter 2 before I even post chapter one! CRAZY! Yeah well…let's just say that…and leave it at that. I'm making no sense again…Golly gee wiz! And omg…Evangelion is one of the best freakin anime shows ever! It beats Inuyasha and ties with Bleach and Spiral. Holy bajeevus! Ok...with out further babbling, I GIVE YOU…the story! OH yeah and I'm sorry but I had some issues with uploading last time, sorry if the first chapter confused you a little. I originally had breaks where they shifted characters, but I guess it deleted them. Gomen...

Disclaimer: It will always stay the same, so why do they make me put it! DO THEY WANT TO TORURE MY PURE INNOCENT SOUL! ……I don't own anything…especially my brain…which has been over run by mutant fleas.

Chapter 2 Haunting Hotels

Ichigo closed his eyes, letting out a sigh. It had been almost an hour since his bout with Rukia, and with each passing second he grew more and more guilty than the last. Chad looked at him, his ears sensing distress. He placed a heavy hand on Ichigo's shoulder.

"You'll both get over it, so stop worrying," he comforted. The wind blew back his brown bangs that normally hung in his eyes, shrouding them in shadows. Ichigo looked up at the big man, not convinced in the slightest.

"She probably hates me now and has returned to….there. Stupid girl and her persistence," Ichigo cursed as he looked down at his feet, then looked up to look at Keigo. "When are we going to be there?" He asked, attempting to change the subject.

"In about…maybe a half hour, 45 minutes at the most. Why?" Keigo answered, not daring to look back at Ichigo.

"Just curious. Ok…" He said with a shrug as he took a deep breath, smelling and tasting the salt air. A smile crept across his face as he stretched his arms over his head. 'The ocean…could it be just a coincidence?' He thought to himself, his dream flooding back into his head.

Time seemed to fly as the five teenaged boys found ways to entertain themselves, namely singing and talking about all of the bikini clad girls that they were bound to find when they arrived. Keigo parked in the parking lot of The Shining Seashell and went inside to get the keys to the rooms that he had reserved for them. He walked back out, yelling a swift "Thanks" to the manager, then waved the keys over his head, smirking mischievously. A chill went down Ichigo's back as he looked around, trying to find the source. His gaze fell upon a shadowy figure standing next to the hotel's pool, it's massive form looming over the small kids that played in the water. His breath caught up in his throat as he stared at the thing, now regretting his decision.

"Oh my god! Those kids!" He whispered to himself as he dropped his duffle bag and began to run to them, fear evident in his eyes. He wasn't going to stop until those kids were out of harms way. He leapt over the fence, his friends calling after him, trying to make him stop, but he wasn't listening. He lunged himself at the shadow, but to his horror, found that he had passed right through it. He fell with a great SPLASH into the water. He looked at the shadow again, and to his realization, found that it was only that…a shadow. Ichigo's eye twitched a little as he fell back into the water.

"Dude! Are you high or something!" Keigo asked as helped Ichigo out of the water. Mizuiro and Chad laughed hysterically at their friends strange behavior. Ichigo gave them a glare as he took his wet tank top off and wrung it out to get the water out of it.

"No….I just thought that it would be nice to have a cool dip," Ichigo lied as he took a key from Keigo and picked up the things that he had dropped, then began to walk to his room.

"There'll be plenty of that in the future my friend!" Ishida replied smoothly as he followed Ichigo up to their room. The orange haired teen shrugged his shoulders, continuing to walk towards the stairs that lead up to his room.

"I know I know….." He replied to Ishida over his shoulder, slightly agitated with everyone at the moment. He looked at his key, reading the number that was inscribed upon the little hunk of brass. "207.…." He whispered to himself as he walked through one of the hall ways, looking for his room. Ichigo wasn't even paying attention to his surroundings, for if he had, he would have been awestruck.

The Shining Seashell had to have been the most luxurious and most expensive hotel on the whole beach. From it's ceiling dangled crystal chandeliers about every 20 feet, illuminating the hall ways with not only light, but a barrage of rainbows and shapes. The carpet seemed to be colored with sapphires, and made of silk, for it's sheen was almost blinding. Ichigo was only staring at the gold letters on the front of the doors though. Not the carpet or the vaulted ceiling with the beautiful chandeliers suspended from it.

"201.…203.….205.…Ah! 207!" He said to himself as he put the key into the lock and pushed open the door after hearing the click on the lock. Ichigo may not have noticed the hall way, but when he walked into the room, he dropped his bags in disbelief and his mouth hung open as though it was a cave in the cliff face of the Grand Canyon. His eyes scanned around the room, as he just stood there, his mouth still agape.

Ichigo stared at the beds, for those alone must have been made for kings! The canopies were pitch as the darkest night and were draped loosely around the king sized bed. An opening could be seen so that the sleeper might be able to crawl into it to enjoy the comfort of the silk sheets and the satin comforter. Millions of pillows, it seemed, were piled onto the beds in a neat and orderly fashion. After a few seconds of continuing to stare at the beds, Ichigo ripped his eyes away to look at the rest of the room. Just a few feet away from the beds was a black leather wrap around sofa, sitting right in front of a nice, big, flat screen TV. Next to the large sofa was a matching reclining chair. (A/N: My god…I wish I could go to this place….It would be a dream! -dabs her tears of longing with a tissue-) He looked a little bit past the "living room," so to speak, into the kitchen. There was a breakfast bar, with a cordless phone propped on the wall next to it, and just in front of where the hardwood floor began, wooden, cushioned stools sat. Ichigo walked over to the bar to look and see what the rest of the kitchen looked like. There was a small island with pots and pans hanging from the racks and a stainless steel refrigerator right behind it. Next to the microwave was an oven and a walk in pantry, which was already full of food and ready for use. Ichigo shook his head, then walked into the bathroom, which was by far one of the biggest bathrooms he had ever seen in his entire life. To his left was the shower, it's door closed and towels hanging right next to the towel rack with in reach ready for use. To his right was a huge counter with two sinks in it, the knobs seemed to Ichigo to be made out of pearl. A huge mirror hung in front of the counter so you could do your hair or brush your teeth. He walked in a little bit further to find a room leading off to a traditional Japanese wash room, then the last thing he saw was the toilet, though it was still a very rich and beautiful piece of art, Ichigo had to admit.

"Wow……" Was all Ichigo could say as he walked out of the bathroom and picked up his stuff and set to next to his bed. He felt uncomfortable in this high luxury palace, for he had never really been in a place as rich as this was. He looked to where a big long, thick curtain was pulled together. As curious as he was, Ichigo wanted to know what was behind it, so he got up and walked to it. He tugged on the draw string, making the curtain open. Ichigo stood in utter amazement at the scene that he saw. What the curtain had been concealing was a huge glass double door that lead out into an even bigger balcony, complete with a small hot tub. Ichigo stepped out side, then began to walk to the rail. The ocean breeze blew back his hair as he stared out at the ocean and all of the vacationers that were picnicking, or swimming down on the surface. He watched all of the young kids play their little games like Cowboys and Indians, or tag. He leaned on the concrete rail, looking around at all of the families and the old folks that would occasionally come out to visit their old pal, the sea. His gaze would continually fall on teens holding hands or kissing, and with each one he saw, the more and more he missed Rukia, the gnarled knot of guilt still in his stomach. Ichigo hung his head, his ears catching his friends surprised gasps as they entered.

"How'd you get a place like this, Keigo…?" Ishida asked, his voice still some what cold as he looked to Keigo, who seemed to be the only one not surprised by the hotels appearance.

"Well, the rooms that we have here are owned by my father. He bought them because he's constantly traveling out here with clients and such, so he just decided to buy a few of the rooms from the owner. The rooms are always stalked with food and fresh towels, and my father even sometimes has them put some extra clothes in the oak dressers. Pretty impressive, wouldn't you say Ichigo?" Keigo explained as he watched Ichigo come back into the room, closing the double doors behind him.

"Yeah, it's amazing," Ichigo agreed bluntly, for his thoughts were else where.

"How many to a room, Keig?" Mizuiro asked as he continued to look around the room.

"Two to each, I hope you don't mind sharing, and one will have to have three, unless you wish to sleep alone," Keigo answered as he moved down the hall to room 209, Mizuiro following him and Chad staying in the room, not minding to sleep on the huge wrap around sofa. Ishida closed the hotel room door and let out a small sigh.

"Wow….I never knew Keigo's family was so rich…" Ishida said to himself as he sat down onto the couch which Chad and Ichigo had already occupied. Ichigo stared at the blank screen of the TV and blinked as he stood up retrieving the remote.

"I say we hit the water as soon as possible," Ichigo grunted as he turned on the TV and tossed the remote onto the small oak coffee table that sat in front of the couch.

"Hai…" Chad nodded as he also stood up. Ichigo moved towards his bag, digging threw it he pulled out his swimming shorts and a pair of sandals.

"I hope you don't mind, but I'm not going into the bathroom to change," Ichigo alleged to his room mates as he stripped his clothes off and began to step into his swim shorts before they even had a chance to protest. Around the room, the other two were doing the same as he was.

"Didn't think so…" Ichigo snickered a little as slipped his sandals on, not wanting the bottom of his feet to get burned from the hot sand. He reached into his bag and pulled out his beach towel, then slung it around his shoulders. "Ready?" He asked the other two as he began to twist the door knob, the key securely in the inner zipper pocket of his swim trunks.

"Yup…" Chad replied as he walked towards Ichigo, Ishida following him, the only one wearing a shirt of some sort. Ichigo nodded then opened the door, just in time to see Keigo and Mizuiro coming out of their door.

"Same idea as us, I see!" Keigo chuckled as he shut the door behind himself then beginning to walk towards the outside.

"Guess so…." Ichigo replied with a shrug as he also closed the door behind himself and the other two that he shared his room with, not really wanting to talk for it would ruin his thoughts too often.

"Let's get going then…" Keigo declared as all five of them began to walk towards the beach, their towels and sunscreen already either slung over their shoulders or in their  
hands.

* * *

Rukia's eyelids drooped as she listened to all of the hubbub in the small car, slightly amused with some of the topics.

"I mean, c'mon! It doesn't really matter the size of it, as long as he has one…right?" Chei argued the subject of weather a man's size really counts or not with Tatsuki.

"It does so! I mean, would you like a guy with a tiny one! GAWD! YOU'RE SO ANNOYING!" Tatsuki yelled, getting tired of arguing every ten seconds with Chei.

"AND SO ARE YOU!" She yelled back, sparks flying between the two. Rukia let out a laugh, making the car go silent.

"What….?" She asked, some what confused.

"You do realize it's almost been an hour since the last time we heard any sound from your mouth….right?" Chizuru answered as she glanced at Rukia, an amused smile on her face.

"Can't help it…You two fight over petty things. Kinda like me and Ichigo do every single day…" Rukia trailed off of her sentence, her smile twisting back into a frown. She looked at her hands, aware that once again all eyes were intently fixed upon her.

"Rukia-San…." Inoue whispered, noticing the change in atmosphere when she had said his name.

'Why? Why do I feel this way? I shouldn't….I'm not allowed…He's just a friend, nothing more, nothing less,' Rukia tried to convince herself, though doing a very poor job at it. Tears began to form at the corners of her eyes, but refused to let them fall.

"You're feelings for him shouldn't be, correct, Miss Rukia…" Ayako said as though reading Rukia's very thoughts. Her quiet voice sent a uncomfortable chill down Rukia's back as she looked at her hands in disbelief. Her hands clenched, grabbing the bottom of her short skirt in anger. How presumptuous that girl was!

"That…is none of your business," Rukia replied, her voice cold and austere as she looked at Ayako through the corner of her eye, watching the girls reaction.

"Answer my question, Miss Rukia, or are you too afraid that if you both share feelings for each other that it will lead to a catastrophe, per se the down fall of all human kind…?" Ayako once again had read her thoughts as though they were an open book. Rukia looked in front of her, her eyes wide with trepidation. She shook her head, attempting to compose herself once again.

"Tell me why you're here and know all of these things, and then I might answer your question. So don't ask me again, some one might get hurt…And stop making stupid predictions like these," Rukia added, her voice seeming to cut through the air like a samurai's katana. "You know nothing, so shut that hole on your face…" She added as her finger twitched, showing a sign of anger.

"H-h-h-how about a nice sing a long session?" Chizuru stuttered, knowing that this could prove as a problem. She switched on the radio where some crappy hip hop music came blaring out of the speakers. Tatsuki covered her ears and grimaced, as though the music had physically hurt her.

"TURN IT OFF! IT'S GONNA KILL ME!" She cried as she reached forward and switched the radio to an alternative rock station.

"HEY!" Chizuru, Chei, and Ayako all yelled at the same time.

"Much better…real music. None of that boy band crap…" She sighed as she began to sing the song that was playing. Inoue joined her in singing, also knowing the song, though she didn't quite know why. Rukia looked around, then deeming it safe, also joined the two, providing a counter melody for the melodic line. Chizuru listened to the three voices, not quite believing her ears.

"Who knew?" She mused to herself as she chuckled, pulling into a parking lot, then parking right next to a familiar jeep. Rukia looked at the car, the feeling that she knew this car emerging with in her, but she just shrugged off the feeling knowing that it would do her no good. She got out of the car, then after retrieving her bags, looked around. Man was this place gorgeous! The smell of the salt air, the cooling shade of the palm trees that had been planted, and the cool breeze tickling the collar of her blouse.

"Looky, looky!" Chizuru sang as she ran out of the office, throwing keys at all of the girls. Rukia smiled then looked a little past Chizuru towards the pool, noticing a huge shadow. Her fists tightened as she suddenly felt that there was something unnatural lurking around, waiting to devour the delicious human souls that were so abundant around here.

"Shhhhhh….." Rukia began as she dropped her things, then began to run towards the huge shadowy figure. She leapt over the fence, then used that as a launching pad to fling herself at the shadow. But just as Ichigo had, she went right threw it, though she didn't land in the water. Her momentum and speed was too great, so she was rammed into the other side of the swimming pool's concrete fence. Some rubble fell away as she got up holding her side, cursing at the shadowy figure. She stared at it for a second, then fell over, her eye twitching.

"Just a shadow! THAT'S ALL IT WAS! I'LL KILL HIM!" She yelled as she got back up then easily leapt over the pool, not noticing that all of the kids and people present had stopped to watch her charge then hit the wall. A young woman with her son shook her head sighing.

"Second one today…" She whispered as she ushered her son out of the gate. Rukia looked towards where the woman had been, hearing the comment.

"Mommy, is she crazy like that fire headed boy too?" A small voice asked the young woman. Rukia's eyes grew wide as she leapt the fence again grabbed her things then looked at her key with had 208 inscribed upon it. She ran into a few people, one yelling at her to slow down, but she ignored the stupid jerk. She flung open her door as soon as she got there, Chizuru hot on her heels. Rukia looked around, not surprised in the least at the hotels appearance as she put her stuff on her bed then let out a sigh.

"Chizuru…what hotel is this..?" She asked, her voice quiet.

"The Shining Seashell…why?" Chizuru replied as she watched Rukia's eyes get big. She shook her head trying to clear the white bubbles that had appeared in her vision away. A little blood trickled down the side of her cheek as she looked towards the door, seeing a young man standing there, an evil smirk on his face. He ran a finger down Chizuru's back, and in response to the contact, she freaked out and hid behind Rukia.

"I saw what you did back there, Miss. Are you crazy! Flinging yourself at a freaking concrete wall! Do you need to go to an asylum? Because only crazy bitches do that sort of thing," He sneered as he entered, taking his bandana off to run his fingers through his jet black hair.

"Shut the hell up. You need to learn some manners, Sir, before I teach them to you the hard way. State your name and your purpose, then leave," Rukia instructed as she stood up, ignoring the throbbing pain in the side of her head.

"Names Niwa…but you can call me daddy, sexy. Purpose? Well to see what the hell is wrong with you…you kinky bitch," He snickered, crossing his arms over his chest. Rukia glared at him.

"Leave," Was all she said before she turned her back on him and looked at Chizuru who had been just cowering behind her the whole time.

"But why? We could always have a little fun…" He smirked again as he began to advance towards her.

"I think, Rukia asked you to leave," Came the rough voice of Tatsuki behind the man. Niwa turned around just to find Inoue, Tatsuki, Ayako, and Chei standing there, their bags next to them.

"Oh, the girl has friends. It's ok weasel, I'll be gentle with your little psycho friend over there," He taunted as he turned back around to look at Rukia.

"You will do no such thing…" Rukia said bringing her hands up, preparing for a fight.

"Really now?" He asked, but right after the words had left his lips, Rukia had lunged at him, her fist making contact with the side of his face. Niwa stumbled back a few paces, his hand placed over his eye.

"You bitch!" He snarled, attempting to hit her in the stomach, but Rukia proved to be too fast for him, for before he even was half way through his lunge, she was behind him, slamming her foot into the base of his neck.

"Leave," She reiterated, not wanting to really deal with a scum bag like him. He stood up, for her last blow had sent him spiraling to the ground. Niwa looked behind him, his gaze falling on the innocent Inoue. Tatsuki noticed this and stood in front of her best friend.

"Don't even think about it…" She warned, cracking her knuckles. Niwa chuckled then began to walk towards the door, surprised and ashamed that he had been to easily subdued by a girl half his height.

"I'll be back, I can assure you of that…" He grunted, stumbling out the door, his hand still covering his eye.

As soon as Niwa had taken his leave, Rukia let out a sigh. Her head ached from slamming into a concrete wall, and from moving so quickly. She finally had to sit down on the bed, blood still trickling down the side of her face.

"What a bother…." She sighed to herself as Inoue walked over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Chizuru…I will stay with Rukia in this room. You room with Tatsuki…we have matters to discuss," Inoue said, also dropping the formalities with her friends. Ayako smirked a little looking at Rukia.

"Seeing things are you, Miss Rukia? Might wanna get your eyes checked, for a simple mistake like that could cost you your life," She sneered as she began to walk towards her own room, Chei in tow. Rukia watched the girl leave in contempt, having a feeling that she would soon show her true colors in time.

"I have a bad feeling about her, it just isn't right. She shouldn't be here, not only that, she reeks of my brother," Rukia said, covering her nose, knowing that it was ok to talk about her brother in front of the other three girls there.

"What do you mean Rukia-San?" Inoue asked, her hand still on her shoulder.

"I mean, she has seen him…and recently. Something's up, and I want to know what it is. Chizuru, I'm sorry about the way I've been acting towards your friends, I just don't like them all too much. I don't like anyone who is in league with my brother…I hope you understand," Rukia explained as she turned to Chizuru, looking the red haired teen in the eyes.

"It's ok, Rukia. It's not your fault that you don't like them," Chizuru replied, nodding her head as she spoke. She looked at Inoue, smiled, then picked up her bags.

"C'mon freakazoid, looks like we're sharing a room, and no funny business, that clear!" Tatsuki stated as the two began to walk down the hallway towards their room. The hotel room door shut with a small click as Rukia wiped away some of the blood. Inoue looked at her, a concerned look on her face.

"Will you be alright?" She asked quietly as she began to inspect the wound.

"It's just a small abrasion, I'll be fine. Besides, you bleed a lot out of your head because of all the blood vessels. No need to worry," She explained as she stood up looking out the huge window that faced the grassy hills. Inoue walked over to where she had set her bag down and dug through it, producing a black bikini, then tossed it at Rukia. She caught it with ease, smiling a little.

"Thank you," She said with a curt nod of her head, then looked at the foreign contraption. "But how the hell do you girls run around modestly in these things?" She mused to herself as she stared at it.

"Who ever said they were modest?" Inoue chuckled as she walked into the bathroom, her red bikini in her hand.

"You're right…girls here like to prance around in almost nothing but rags, kinda silly if you ask me," Rukia commented as she watched Inoue disappear into the bathroom to get dressed. She let out a sigh as she also began to put the bikini on, wondering if all girls wore these things. "Let's hope not…" She whispered to herself as she took out a towel and flung it over her shoulders, waiting for Inoue to return from the bathroom.

"I'm comin' out!" Inoue said as she came out, her clothes clutched to her chest as she walked over to her bag and stuffed them back in. She dug around in the bag again, this time taking out two little shawly things. (A/N You know…those things that you tie around your waist when you go swimming, but take it off when you actually are in the water? Hell if I know what they be called….-.-) She threw one at Rukia, then tied hers around her waist, waiting for Rukia to do the same.

"Uhhhh…..ok…." She muttered as she followed Inoue's lead and tied the thing on, who smiled at the dark eyed teen.

"We're set! TO THE WATER!" Inoue exclaimed as she flung open the hotel room door,  
dragging Rukia along with her.

* * *

Chapter 2 completed! And btw…Niwa is a very important character, so don't forget who he is…that jerk. Also, you'll start to notice that Chei and Ayako aren't all that they seem to be on the outside. So, how ya'll like it so far? I mean, I've completed chapter 2 before I even uploaded chapter one. Craaaazy man! Yeah well….I can already tell you, these friends are in for a whole load of trouble in the near future. MUAHAHAHA! Retro party, Country Karaoke, Rain….MUAHAHAHAHA! Can't wait, and hopefully you guys'll keep me motivated, cuz my reviewers always seem to peter out on me and so I kinda just give up. Say that you'll continue to send me spam until I update or something. Something threatening. Writers block sucks btw. Ok ok ok, here's my advice so we can all go to sleep. Never run when you haven't stretched your butt muscles properly…you'll most likely pull it. Do you know how many muscles I've pulled since the beginning of the season (which was a week ago might I add...but not anymore...since my season is over...shows how long I waited to post this story...) ! THREE! COUNT THEM! THREE! Golly gee wiz! And I also got tendonitous in my right throwing shoulder, sonow if I put too much stress on it, it'll throb and my ring finger and my pinky will go numb...it's annoying...Ok, so with out further babbling, I leave! Till Next Time!

Sakura! (Peace Out Dudes)


	3. Blood and Rain

Two chapters completed, and one started before I even upload chapter one! THIS IS CRAZY! I think this is a way that will keep me writing though, I mean I get bored and stuff, so I just quite writing. I think ya'll will enjoy this chapter. Niwa gets it! AH HAHAHAHA! But this is only the start of things. Just you guys wait. And I've actually noticed that there are more and more Bleach fics every week. Good job guys! Maybe if I can pull my mind away from my fic and from Evangelion, I will read some. Oh yeah...and when I uploaded this the first time, my pc was freakin out so it wouldn't let me edit it. So now when I change characters it's going to be either a & or a "..." OK without further babbling, I give you…a story!

Disclaimer: Ok I almost forgot about this thing. Too bad I didn't. Rats. Ok Well…I may not own Bleach, but that doesn't mean that I can't try and take the rights away! MUAHAHAHAHA! Just you wait….just you wait! YOU WILL ALL CURSE THE DAY WHEN YOU MADE THIS AUTHORESS TYPE DISCLAIMERS!

Momo: -.-' Oh Jeeze…Sakura's gone crazy again. Time for the tranqs. -Pulls out a tranq gun and aims for Sakura who's laughing insanely scary-

Sakura: THE STORY CONTINUES! -Gets shot by tranq-

Chapter 3 Rain and Blood

Ichigo laid his towel out neatly in the shade of one of the many trees that ran along the extensive beach. The scorching sun beat down on the five boys like an unrelenting whip as they set up their little "camp" I guess you would call it. Keigo and Chad had carried out a cooler full of beverages and food with them, and now three of the five boys were crowded around it, eating and enjoying the taste of an ice cool Cola. Ichigo rolled his eyes as he took off his sandals and began to walk towards the water, wishing for the cool liquid to just steal all of his troubles away.

"Yo, Ichigo! Where ya goin'!" Keigo shouted, his mouth full as he did so. He spit some food on Ishida, who in return brushed it off of him and went to follow Ichigo, not really wanting to hang out with some morons at the moment.

"It's the beach, nit wit. Where do you think I'm goin'? To a tea party!" He yelled back, slightly agitated as he dove into the water as soon as it was about waist deep on him. He resurfaced, paddling on his back, looking at all of the people who had been staring at him. 'Funny…' He thought to himself as he smiled a little. 'A few seconds ago, I was the one staring at all of them…' He continued to backstroke, un aware that Ishida had followed him and was swimming right next to him.

"Watch out for rip tides, Kurosaki," He stated as Ichigo jumped at least ten feet out of the water.

"Right right…" He grunted as he began to swim away from his "rival" so to speak. The water seemed to assuage his tense muscles, the ocean actually acting like a massage. He let out a relaxed sigh as he swam his way over to the shore, then returned to his friends, feeling slightly better.

"That girl that ran into you sure wasn't very polite," Mizuiro said to Keigo as he popped open another can of Cola.

"I know, and if I find out what room she is in, I'll sure let her have a piece of MY mind…" Keigo threatened as he crossed his arms over his chest, still some what angry at the black haired girl that had run into him in the parking lot of The Shining Seashell.

"You wouldn't really hit a girl, now would you? I mean, I'm sure she didn't mean anything by it," Ishida replied cooly as he also joined the four friends, now making their numbers five. He looked at Keigo curiously, awaiting his reply.

"No he wouldn't, because I would wail on him. Don't you know that hitting a girl is by far the worst thing any man can do? I would kill you if I ever found out you had even pushed a girl," Ichigo hissed, his eyes narrowing dangerously as he looked at Keigo.

"Nah, I'd just tell her to be more careful is all, no need to get violent," He said with a nervous chuckle as he put his arms up defensively. Ichigo nodded his head as he turned to look out at the sparkling ocean, just to get lost in his thoughts once again. For a few seconds, the beach seemed to be silent. The waves didn't even seem to move to Ichigo who was lost in his own little world. Suddenly, he was pulled from his world by a shrill shriek from a woman out in the water. Ichigo's senses took over as he searched for the source of the scream. He saw a small child being carried out to sea by a strong current, and the scream was that of the child's mother. He took off running towards the small body bobbing in the water. His friends yelled after him to stop, trying to tell him that the kid was a goner, but Ichigo absolutely refused to let that come true.

"The child is not…not if I'm here," He whispered to himself as he dove into the water, then began to pull himself towards the small figure. The child only had to have been forty yards away, but with the waves crashing up against his body, it seemed like one hundred yards. But even still, his body cut through the waves like a knife through warm butter. His muscular arms pumped with blood, and even though he began to tire, the constant thought of the child's life being taken away at such an early age made all of his wariness dissipate for the time being. Finally, after about five minutes of swimming, Ichigo finally managed to catch the small child by the arm. He heaved the little girl onto his back, for he knew that she would not be able to swim by herself. She shook violently as Ichigo held onto her, beginning to swim back to the shore. His friends were standing waist deep in the water, yelling at him of about how much of a fool he was. He chuckled a little, but was cut short when he felt a sharp pain in his leg. To his horror, Ichigo found that in his rushed hurry, he had managed to nick his leg on a sharp rock, and that the water was beginning to turn a crimson color.

"Damn it…" He cursed as he saw some dark shadowy figures begin to follow him. His body, fighting for the shore and for not only his life, but for the small girls as well, was pumped with adrenaline. Ichigo swam even faster, his arms screaming in agony as he continued to swim on, his little cut stinging because of the salt.

"Almost there," He said more to himself than to the little girl that he had a hold of. She nodded her head, trembling still. She looked around, noticing the dark shapes following them and the crimson trail that Ichigo was leaving. She let out an ear piercing scream as she noticed what the shadows were.

"SHARK!" She cried as she clung to Ichigo, who in turn cussed, then began to swim even faster, if that was even possible. Finally, after what seemed to be hours, Ichigo stood up, the water about waist deep on him. He clutched the little girl closer to him as he watched the shadow continue to advance, wondering if it would ever stop it's pursuit for fresh meat. Ichigo began to run towards the safe beach, where the sharks couldn't get him. His feet dug into the sandy bottom as he sprinted, his body wanting to give out though from his earlier exertions. He finally tripped and fell, landing safely out of the water, with the little girl still safe. His breath came ragged as he felt the girl jump off of him and run to her crying mother, who in return hugged her daughter tightly. Ichigo pushed himself up, then looked at his leg. Sure enough, there was a very small cut on it, but it was enough to bleed some.

"ICHIGO! YOU BAKA!" Keigo shouted as he ran towards his orange haired friend. Ishida rolled his eyes a little as he let out a sigh.

"I would have to agree with him. That wasn't the smartest thing to do, idiot. You should have let the life guard do that," He said, his tone icy and un approving. Ichigo shook his head.

"You guys just don't get it. I have the power to save people, in more than one way. I was not about to let that small girl die and just become a Hallow, like so many others have! My mother would have done the same for me, actually she tried…So I find it my duty to protect everyone that I can. You guys wouldn't know what it's like to loose some one so close," Ichigo replied, his tone just as icy as Ishida's had been. He felt a small tug on his shorts, then looked down. The small girl looked up at him, her blue eyes filled with tears. He smiled warmly, then knelt down to look her in the eyes.

"T-thank you sir," She stuttered, her small voice quiet and shaken. She then hugged him tightly, burying her face into his wet chest. He returned her hug with his own, his smile still in place.

"It was no big deal. But just remember to do as your mama says," He said as he pointed to the girls mother. The young woman shook her head, some what startled.

"I thank you also sir, but I am not that girls mother. I am her aunt, sorry to disappoint you," She replied with a chuckle as she walked over to Ichigo, also giving him a hug. "But none the less, I am still thankful for what you have done for my niece, thank you. Thank you," She added as she picked her niece up.

"It was no problem, and if you need me again, just call, and I'll do what I can, Miss," He said with a smile as he began to walk back to his room, his heart heavy with sorrow and lament.

&

Rukia looked up at the sky, smiling a little. It was good for her to get out every once and a while, she had to admit. Inoue looked at her curiously as she continued to drag the dark haired teen down the beach.

"You ok, Rukia-San?" Inoue asked as she stopped, still looking at her. Rukia nodded her head.

"I'm fine, but it sure does seem that it's going to start raining out…" She stated as she looked up at the darkening sky. Inoue nodded.

"I see what you mean, but I hope that it won't rain. That would really suck.." She whined as she plopped down onto the sandy ground. People, who also noticed the weather change, began to walk back to their cars or hotel rooms, hoping to wait out the coming sprinkle. Rukia looked up and down the beach, only to find that there was hardly anybody left out there. (A/N : Rukia and Inoue missed the whole shark thing and Ichigo is already back in his room by now. They were poking around in the hotel's hall ways…) She sighed a little, her mind beginning to wonder a little on things that she just wanted to forget at the moment.

"Hopefully it won't last long…" She said quietly as she picked herself up and began to walk down the beach further, Inoue following her lead.

"Hai…We can just seek shelter under the trees if it gets too bad," Inoue commented as she looked at the sand, watching a few raindrops hit the ground. Rukia looked up at the clouding sky, a nervous knot in her stomach again, as though something bad was going to happen.

"I don't like this…it's…un natural…" She whispered to herself as she continued to walk as though nothing was bothering her. Inoue had heard Rukia's comment, and agreed with it, but still kept her gaze fixed on the ground, her mouth shut, and her hands wringing nervously behind her back.

As soon as the two girls were about three hundred yards away from The Shining Seashell, a group of men surrounded them. By this time, the rain was coming on steadily, and showed no signs of letting up. Rukia looked around at all of the Teens, analyzing them just in case she had to take drastic measures. A cold chuckle was heard from the shadows to the right of them.

"I told you that I'd be back," Came the all too familiar voice of Niwa as he stepped out into the dim light to where Rukia could see him. "And you will pay, Missy, oh, take my word for it…you will pay."

"Go away Niwa, before my fist finds you again…" Rukia stated coldly as she noticed some switch blades being pulled, along with some pipes and chains. Her fists went up, ready for an assault of some sort.

"I don't think so, not this time," He said as he nodded his head. Three men jumped at Inoue, who happened to be behind Rukia, and totally caught both of the girls off guard. Inoue had been caught.

"You filthy son of a bit---"

"Now now now, profanity will not be tolerated. Cooperate and your little friend here won't get hurt…My men are restless and it's been a while since they've seen such beauty such as yourself and her…they might…do something…drastic…" Niwa sneered, his eyes narrowing in triumph as Rukia let her arms drop to her sides, then hung her head.

"What…do you want with me?" She asked, her hands clenched into fists as she waited for her opening. Niwa smiled.

"I knew you'd come around…" He snickered as he advanced towards her, grabbing her by the hair, making her meet his eyes. What Niwa expected to find was a sullen and somber look upon her face, but to his horror found that her expression was smug. She swatted his hand away, then in the blink of an eye, launched herself at one of the three men that was holding Inoue. The poor guy didn't even have a chance to get ready before he was on the ground unconscious, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. Rukia went on to the other two, taking one of them out with a single kick in the back of the head, which launched the guy into the other thug, also rendering him helpless. She landed on her feet lightly, catching the passed out Inoue easily.

"Grrrrr...GET HER!" Niwa screamed as he motioned to his men to grab Rukia. She looked around, not sure what to do, for with the extra body she couldn't move any faster than the rest of them. She managed to evade some of the tackles, but was soon overtaken by the big, burly ruffians. Niwa walked over to her and slapped her hard in the face, the attack intensified by the water that ran down her face from the pouring down rain. Rukia continued to have a smug smile on her lips as she looked to one side, waiting, her wet hair sticking to her face as she did so.

"You're one dead bitch," He snarled as he kicked her hard in the stomach. She didn't even seem to show the slightest twitch of pain. Rukia looked at one of the men who had her then wrapped her leg around his and pulled. She managed to topple him, herself, and the other guy over, making them all crash into the sand. Niwa wasn't about ready to let his prey go though so he took the now conscious Inoue up and held a knife to her throat.

"I'll kill her if you move another inch, bitch," He snarled as he pressed the knife against Inoue's throat, earning a small whimper from the red head. Rukia froze, for she had been caught.

&

Ichigo had returned to his room and was lounging about on the sofa when he heard the familiar pitter patter of rain on the roof. He looked out the big glass double doors and smiled a little. The stereo in the far corner blasted out some guitar riffs, then a nice little trumpet/trombone ensemble. Finally, the soft words reached his ears, the mans soft voice floating around the room.

_It's coming down…_

_It's coming…down_

_It's raining outside_

_You've no where to hide_

_She's asking you why you think it's…funny._

Ichigo had always hated the rain, ever since he was a little kid. It brought bad memories to him. Like his mothers death. He let out a small sigh, his once smiling mouth turned upside down into a scowl.

_It's coming down_

_It's coming down_

_She's leaving your house_

_She had to get out_

_She's mad and she'll take her mattress with her_

"But it's just too damn warm in here…" He mutter to himself as he opened the doors and walked outside into the pouring down rain, making the song muffled and quiet. His white tank top stuck to his sleek chest as he looked up at the sky, the drops pelting his face and streaking down his cheeks like tears. Out of the corner of his eye, Ichigo saw some movement.

"People? Out in this downpour?" He muttered to himself as he strained his eyes to see what was happening. Then it hit him. "A brawl….or an attack maybe?" He asked himself and without thinking hopped off the concrete railing and began to run in the direction of the struggle.

&

Rukia looked at Niwa, her eyes wide with fear as she did so. He smiled in satisfaction, twisting the blade a little bit to add effect.

"Now, get up and walk to me, slowly," He instructed as he motioned to her with the knife. Rukia did as she was told, for she didn't want Inoue to get hurt because of some stupid mistake that she had made. Niwa suddenly grabbed her wrist, pulling her towards him and tossing Inoue away from him as though she was a diesis. Rukia trembled a little bit as she closed her eyes, waiting for him to do away with her.

"That's better," He chuckled as he brushed his lips against her wet neck. Rukia was surprised, for she had expected to be killed, not "loved" (if that's what you would call it…). She pushed him away from her, looking at Inoue then yelled, "RUN!"

"And leave you---"

"RUN GOD DAMMIT!" Rukia interrupted before Inoue even had a chance to finish her sentence. What ever willed Inoue to run away from her friend that night, she would never know, but before she could even make out what she was doing, she was already safely back in her hotel room, a puddle of water beginning to form where she was standing.

Niwa caressed Rukia's cheek then began to kiss her jaw line, his arms wrapping around her body and pulling her closer. He slowly began to undo the bikini top, still kissing her jaw line and neck…etc etc. (A/N: Lol…wow…he's in for it now…-maniacal laughter-) For some reason, Rukia could not move her limbs, she could only stand there and allow herself to be played with. She soon felt Niwa's cold lips pressed firmly against hers, her mind exploding with warning colors, yet she still could not move. He kissed her passionately, all the while thinking in his head what a fun thing she would turn out to be. Suddenly, a fist was launched at Niwa's stomach. Rukia looked at him, surprised that she had been able to move enough to hit him. He doubled over in pain, then looked up at her, his eyes full of hatred.

"BITCH!" He snarled as he lunged at her, slicing her shoulder then cheek with his knife. Blood mixed with the rain as it began to spill to the floor.

"No, you're the bitch…I'll teach you to attack un armed women," said a familiar voice to Rukia, though she couldn't quite place it at the moment. A severe pain exploded in her shoulder as she clutched her bleeding wound. The attack had been deep, no matter how much she hated to admit it.

"Who the fuck are you?" Niwa grunted as he stood up, but was met with a flurry of fists that moved too fast to even see. He collapsed to the soggy ground, spitting out blood. Another kick was sent to his ribs, and upon hearing a sickening snap, the guy who had come to Rukia's rescue began to walk away from the unconscious scum bag and towards Rukia. She looked up at him and right off saw orange hair, but everything else became a blur.

&

When Rukia awoke, she was in a warm bed, wearing a white, long button up shirt and her arm had been wrapped neatly with a white cloth. She sat up, then shook her head, the pain still lingering in her head and arm. She let out a small groan, the black velvet curtains making it seem like it was pitch black. She moved to get out of the bed, but before she even touched her feet to the ground, a hand threw back one of the curtains and revealed Ichigo standing there, topless and in boxer shorts.

"Are you alright..?" He asked a little gruffly. What had happened to all of his earlier guilt?

"I'm fine, thank you. I had the situation under control. You didn't have to--" Rukia was cut off of her own sentence by the sudden thought of Niwa's kiss. She lurched forward, slapping her hand over her mouth. The thought made her want to throw up. Ichigo furrowed his eyebrow, concerned a little. He put a hand on her back and gently rubbed it, hoping that it would make her feel better.

"What's wrong?" He asked, softly this time, as though he cared. Rukia straightened herself then looked at him again, not really wanting to tell him what was on her mind, and slightly surprised that Ichigo had changed moods so quickly. 'I wonder if he's going through PMS…' she thought to herself, but then the urge to throw up resurfaced again.

"Nothing…Look Ichigo. I'm sorry about earlier…" Rukia said as she looked away from him, frowning a little bit. Ichigo smiled warmly then placed his hand gently on her shoulder.

"It's ok….I wanted to also apologize…I acted like a jerk earlier. I hope you can forgive me, Rukia…" He replied. Rukia looked up at him, a little bit shocked. This was the second time she had the tingly feeling when she was with/and or thinking about him. Her head began to swim as she blinked many times, trying to clear away the white spots that had erupted in her vision.

"Oi….." She moaned as she curled up into a small ball on the bed. She closed her eyes tightly as she tried to wait out the sick feeling that had resurfaced in her stomach. Ichigo looked at her with concern as he once again recommenced in rubbing her back, trying to still make her feel better.

"What's wrong?" He asked quietly as he noticed some sweat beginning to form on her face.

"I just feel sick…that's all…." She explained.

"You look more than just sick to me, what's wrong?" He asked her as he began to make circle motions on her back.

"I think….it may have been something Niwa had eaten…his breath was foul. It makes me want to---" Rukia was cut off from the overwhelming urge to vomit. She jumped up and ran to the bathroom, throwing up right when she reached the toilet. Ichigo followed her, concerned greatly.

"Rukia?" he asked as she looked up at him, her face pale and sweat dripping down it. Her eyes bulged and she turned back to the toilet and threw up again. Ichigo went to her aid by holding her hair back for her. _'Why me?' _he thought to himself as he looked up at the ceiling. Rukia suddenly stood up, wiping her mouth as she did so. Her head wasn't as spinney as it had been earlier, and she was feeling a bit better. She looked at him, her eyes kinda glassy.

"I'm ok…" She muttered, her voice hoarse and scratchy as she made her way back to the bed and sat down on it. She looked at Ichigo sternly as she let out a sigh, her head aching a little bit. "You have to go back home, Ichigo. People could get---" Rukia was cut off by Ichigo's loud voice.

"GOD DAMMIT RUKIA! I DON'T CARE WHAT THE HELL YOU THINK! I NEED THIS DAMNED VACATION! SO DEAL WITH IT!" He shouted in her face. Rukia stood up, her face deathly calm as she pushed her way passed the orange hair boy. She opened the door and began to stomp off to where her own room was, but to her horror, when she had gotten out the door, she found that her room was RIGHT next to his.

&

A/N: ACHA! So much to do, so little time! -.- This is getting harder and harder every day, but I hope ya'll like the story! I'm happy right now! W00t w00t! OK well…short author's note to day so…my advice for today is…don't hit the wall…it kinda hurts. .' Not that I would know or anything….-looks around innocently as she begins to scoot away-

Till Next Time!

Sakura! P.O.D.


	4. The Common House Cold

HAHA! I am back with chapter 4! Please excuse Ichigo's bipolar-ness…he's kinda…not sure of himself right now. Stubborn Ichigo….ha. Well…how have things been lately everyone? Hectic? If yes…it's the same here…I'm soooo tired. If you really wanna know why visit my xanga. My sn's midknightmists so yeah…Umm….well….nothing much really to say except that finals are killing me….-cries- No moooooreeeee. On with the story! Oh yeah, and the anime Comet is not a real show..but I decided to be stupid and make my own dumbass joke. Get it? Bleach and Comet? -bud dun chish!- Both cleaning products….lol….I'm a retard. IMPORTANT: Oh yeah, and just to clear some things up, I know that you all are thinking, "Ichigo, you cold heartless bastard! How can you be so mean to Rukia when she was almost raped!" Am I right? Well, I guess I was so tired when I got done with chapter 3, that I forgot to explain that there was a twist. Ichigo never saw any thing that Niwa did to Rukia except slash at her. You have to remember that it was also pouring down rain, and it's kind of hard to see when there is water in your eyes. A reviewer made this issue known to me, and I thank you very much. I hope that you understand a little bit better about how Ichigo was acting so "cold" I guess. But don't worry….there are more twists to come….-evil laugh- And I know that a lot of them, will confuse the hell out of you all. Muahahahahahaha!

Disclaimer: You know if I had a nickel for each time I wrote one of these, I'd be rich right now. -does not own Bleach…only Ayako and Chie (the characters)- Oh yeah funny story…Ayako and Chei are actual people…they were Mo's exchanged students…lol…

Chapter 4 The Common House Cold

Ichigo watched Rukia leave, his eyebrows drawn together angrily, but was soon startled by a furious looking Rukia run back into his room.

"YOU MEAN TO TELL ME YOU'RE RIGHT ACROSS THE HALLWAY FROM ME! GRAAAAHG!" She yelled as she slammed the door again as she left, leaving a very confused Ichigo sitting on his bed. He blinked a little, trying to register what the black haired death god had just told him.

"Nani…!" He asked, horrified to himself. He stood up and walked out of his room and across the hall way and flung open the door to 208. He found Inoue checking all over a very disgruntled Rukia, making sure that nothing too serious had happened to her. The two young women didn't even hear Ichigo come in.

"Are you sure you're ok, Rukia-san?" Inoue asked as she circled her, the death god feeling quite naked in only the button up shirt that only went to her mid thighs. She nodded her head as she sighed, running her fingers through her sandy and snarled hair.

"I'm fine….just a few scratches…" Rukia reassured Inoue as she made a move to turn around just to find Ichigo standing right behind her. She looked up at him and glared.

"Get out of our room, Sir," Rukia stated coldly as she moved around him and took a fresh white towel out of the linen closet. She made her way to the bathroom and put her towel on the toilet seat, then once again made her way back out into the living area where she had put her things. She rummaged through her bag and upon finding some suitable sleeping clothes (aka pajama pants and a black tank top) she began to walk back to the bathroom to take a much needed warm shower. Inoue and Ichigo watched her, a bit confused but they were both shaken out of their state when they saw the shoulder of the white shirt turning crimson.

"Rukia-san! Your shoulder!" Inoue said, a concerned look on her face as she made her way over to Rukia. The dark haired girl shrugged.

"It wouldn't have happened if a certain someone would have gotten there quicker…" She replied as she shot a cold glance in Ichigo's direction. She once again remember the disgusting kiss that she had been forced to endure, all the color from her face leaving. She took a deep breath then walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her and locking it.

"I GOT THERE, DIDN'T I! MAYBE I SHOULD HAVE JUST LET HIM KILL YOU, RUKIA!" Ichigo yelled in response as he hit the door, his hands balled tightly into fists. On the other side of the door, Rukia sighed knowing that she had acted wrong out there and that she should be glad that he had saved her, but her actions said otherwise.

"I know…" She whispered to herself as she turned on the shower then discarded the white shirt to the bathroom floor, her entire body feeling as though it was caked in mud. She slowly stepped into the shower, then realizing the wrap on her arm, she sighed. Rukia began to slowly remove the it, the now crimson cloth sticking to her shoulder as she attempted to peeled it away. She grimaced a little as she threw the wrap out of the shower and looked at her shoulder.

"I'm lucky to get by with such a minor scratch…." She said to herself as she winced a little as the warm water hit the slightly festering wound. Rukia slowly closed her eyes, letting the water rush over her, calming her in a way. She opened her eyes again, grabbed the shampoo and began to wash her hair, wondering what was going on on the other side of the door.

&

Ichigo laid his head on the door and closed his eyes, his breath coming in as short gasps. Inoue cautiously walked over to Ichigo and laid a hand on his shoulder, worry and curiosity getting the better of her.

"Kurosaki-kun….what happened?" She slowly asked, choosing her words carefully.

Ichigo let out a sigh then replied, "Nothing happened….he just slashed her and got her arm and a piece of her cheek….nothing serious…"

"Well….why say you would have left Rukia-san to die? You know just as well as I do that she is capable of kicking someone's ass…" She asked as she winced a little as she felt Ichigo's muscles tighten under her hand.

"None of your damn business…" Ichigo stopped mid sentence, his eyes flying open while he whirled around to face the door.

"That's not the way to speak to a lady, Kurosaki…" The cold voice coming from the door way commented.

"Ishida…I am in no mood for you and your stupid little games…" He muttered as he leaned against the bathroom door, waiting. Ichigo slowly crossed his arms in front of his chest as he sighed deeply.

"You have no right, Ichigo! You were just sulking not too long ago about how you had acted earlier, and now you're yelling at the one you wanted more than anything in the world to just apologize to! You're a pathetic man…" Ishida replied cooly as he turned and walked out of the girls' room and back into his. Ichigo watched him leave, grasping to find his words, though his tongue could not find a retort for he knew what Ishida had said was true. Ichigo slumped his shoulders as he looked down at his feet, a scowl set firmly on his face.

&

Rukia listened intently through the bathroom door, and after hearing Ishida's cold statement, she grabbed the door handle and was about to go back out right after Ichigo's reply, knowing that surely that boy would have a retort in no time. She waited to hear his low voice, but heard none. A thud against the door startled her a little bit and in response, she jumped back a few feet.

"Why don't you answer, Ichigo? Say that you didn't wish to apologize…say that I mean nothing to you…..say it…" She whispered in an urgent voice, as though if he didn't say it the world would come to a bloody end. She waited once more, but the only sound that came to her ears was the pounding of her heart in her chest. A tap on her shoulder made her jump and turn around suddenly, her body preparing for a fight.

"You want him to say it….you want him to hurt your feeling's, no?" Stated the oh so familiar voice of Ayako. Rukia looked around, slightly confused. She knew that something had tapped her, but when she had turned around, nothing was there. And even more baffling, she heard Ayako's voice, but once again the voice had no body to go with it. The dark haired teen looked around alertly, her hands clenched tightly into fists. She noticed a small trail of blood go down her forearm, then cursed at the stinging pain that erupted in her shoulder.

"I do not…" She slowly said out loud, her voice wavering with uncertainty as she shook her head.

"Oh, but your thoughts are telling me otherwise, Death God…" The voice replied slyly. Rukia twitched a little bit, then deciding that she had had enough of this little game of hide and go seek, she picked up Ichigo's blood stained shirt and wrenched open the door, her shoulder throbbing in pain.

"Oi!" Ichigo shouted in surprise as he fell backwards into Rukia, creating the domino effect. Rukia sighed a little bit as she pushed herself up, blood dripping all over the bathroom floor. She winced again as she covered her shoulder wound with her other hand and stumbled around a little, trying to get to the med kit that was right outside the bathroom door.

"Rukia-san!" Inoue gasped upon seeing the trail of blood and the constant stream flowing down her arm. Rukia looked at Inoue, then to the ground, then back to Inoue. She grabbed the med kit and pushed Ichigo out of her way. The orange haired boy wrinkled his nose at her, but his expression soon turned into that of a concerned one when he felt a few droplets of blood land on his face. He shot up and ran over to Rukia who was trying in vain to get her shoulder rewrapped.

"Let me help you…" He said softly as he took the wrappings from Rukia and began to wrap her arm up again with out even getting her consent first. Ichigo looked at Inoue over his shoulder as he worked and sighed.

"Inoue, you might want to go get Chizuru…we might have to take Rukia to the hospital, and I don't trust Keigo to drive," Ichigo ordered as Inoue nodded and ran out the door to find Chizuru.

"I'll be fine, Ichigo," Rukia whispered. Ayako's words came back to her at that moment, as she hung her head then realized that Ichigo had placed his hand on her un injured shoulder, his touched seeming not to hint the slightest of hostility. She felt her face grow a little warm, then shook her head a little bit, making some strands of hair fall in front of her face. Ichigo frowned a little as he brushed back her hair, then noticing the tips of her ears were a bit red he looked at her confused.

"Rukia…are you feeling alright?" He asked as he stood up, leaving the dark haired girl sitting on the counter of the bathroom.

"I'm fine…." She replied quietly as she got up, her stomach lurching a little bit as she walked. The room began to swirl around her, as though she was spinning, but she could very well tell that she was not doing anything of the such. Rukia groaned and brought her hand to her head, stumbling a bit in the process. She managed to catch herself from falling completely down by holding onto the door handle.

"You don't look it…." Ichigo said as he picked her up off of her feet for her knees had been buckling and brought her over to what he assumed was her bed. He set her down at the edge, then kneeled down in front of her, a frown placed firmly upon his lips. Rukia took a few deep breaths, trying to calm her head, but to no avail. With each movement she made it felt like she was going to fall off of the bed and pass out onto the cold hard floor.

"This is normal, is it not?" She asked Ichigo, her voice a bit hoarse and scratchy as she laid down onto the bed, curling up into a tight ball, her eyes clamped tightly shut, trying to keep back the raising bile.

"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked as he stood up and sat down next to her, his hand shooting for her forehead. His eyes widened in surprise as he brought his hand back then looked down at the now groaning girl.

"Rukia….you're burning up, you need to get some rest. I think that all of that rain in only a bikini made you sick. You have to go to sleep," He told her as he once again picked her up then threw back the blankets to the bed. He laid her down carefully then tucked her in.

"I'm not sick…just tired…" Came the calm voice of Rukia as she tried to wiggle her way out of the blankets, but eventually gave up and stayed still, her eyelids closing slowly. Ichigo sighed a little bit as he got up and walked over to her rooms couch and plopped down on it.

"I'M BACK!" Inoue yelled as she drug Chizuru into the door right behind her. Ichigo jumped a little, then looked over at Inoue and the slightly confused Chizuru.

"Inoue….did you just drag Chizuru-san out of her room with no explanation as to why she must come here?" He asked the red haired girl as he stroked his chin.

"Uhhh…..y-yes…" Inoue chuckled nervously as she shrugged.

"It's ok, Inoue…Rukia is asleep and her shoulder will be fine. Though, I should ask you to be quiet, for little Miss Get-her-self-into-trouble has gotten herself sick. Jeeze….what an idiot…" Ichigo muttered as he laid down onto the couch, closing his eyes.

"Oh…ok…" Inoue whispered as she looked at Chizuru and smiled innocently. "Sorry for dragging you out of your room, breaking you lamp, lighting the curtain on fire, knocking over your stools, making a hole in the wall, and stubbing your toe in my hurry."

"That's quite alright, nothing that duct tape can't fix!" Chizuru chuckled as she watched Ichigo twitch a little. "So….why was I brought over here? Where's the fire?"

"Rukia got hurt while trying to----"

"Inoue!" Ichigo cut the red haired girl off from her explanation of what had happened to Chizuru. Inoue looked at him quizzically as she tried to figure out what she had done wrong.

"What…?" She asked, confusion written all over her face.

"She doesn't need to know. Nobody needs to know what has happened…." Ichigo stated simply as he looked at Chizuru. "She just fell and got hurt pretty badly, that's all Chizuru-san, don't worry about it…" He added as he laid back down and sighed.

"Ichigo Kurosaki! Do you really think that I'm THAT stupid! Inoue was going to tell me something, and so she should finish what she was saying. You baka…" Chizuru huffed as she turned to Inoue and crossed her arms in front of her chest, waiting for an explanation.

"It is…as Ichigo-kun says…" Inoue replied hesitantly as she looked his way. 'Why? Why does he want to keep this a secret from everyone?' Inoue mulled over in her mind.

"…….You two….." Chizuru muttered as she shrugged defeated.

"ACHA! CHIZURUUUUU! YOU LEFT ME ALL ALONE IN THAT ROOM WITH A FIRE! YOU IDIOT!" Tatsuki yelled as she stomped into the room, soot covering her face and clothes. One of Tatsuki's hairs comically stood out, the tip of it on fire, but then realizing the potential threat, the tomboy pinched out the small flame, a look of annoyance painted on her face. Chizuru chuckled nervously as she shrugged.

"I said, Tatsuki….BE QUIET!" Ichigo yelled at the top of his lungs, his anger finally getting the best of him. He didn't have time to hear these girls ranting and complaining. Rukia stirred from her bed and sat up her hand on her head.

"How about you all….SHUT UP!" She yelled just as loud then fell back into her blankets and pillows, her being feeling like she had been hit with a truck. Rukia let out a muffled groan as she closed her eyes tightly. "God…you're all so damn loud…can't a girl get some sleep around here?"

Everyone stared at Rukia, then twitched a little. Ichigo glared at Tatsuki and muttered, "This is all your fault, monkey girl."

"Monkey girl…..?" Tatsuki narrowed her eyes as she stepped forwards menacingly. Ichigo nodded his head then stood up. He stretched his arms above his head then yawned.

"Yup…monkey girl…" He reiterated as he pushed past all of the girls and began to make his way towards his own room. He glanced at the clock that was mounted on the wall and blinked a little. "12 am already!" He exclaimed, a look of disbelief on his face.

"What, really!" All of the girls asked all at once. He nodded his head once again and scratched his back.

"That must be the reason why you're running around in nothing but your boxers on, eh?" Chizuru jeered as she chuckled a little.

"Make sure she gets lots of rest and liquids, Inoue. And what ever your do, don't let her leave that bed unless she's going to the bathroom, got that?" He directed, ignoring Chizuru's taunt all together.

"R-right!" Inoue saluted as she watched Ichigo leave. As soon as she heard his door to his room close, she ushered Chizuru and Tatsuki out, so that Rukia could rest in piece.

After the two had been shoved out the door practically, she walked over to Rukia's bed and smiled.

"There you go, Rukia-san. All nice and quiet," She stated simply as she began to leave.

"Why…didn't he say anything?" Rukia asked, her face contorted in pain as she rolled over onto her good shoulder. "Why?" Inoue blinked as she listened to Rukia, not sure what the girl was talking about.

"Rukia-san…what are you talking about?" Inoue asked curiously as she took a step back towards Rukia's bed. The dark haired girl groaned a little again then sighed.

"Marsh mellows and cream cheese…." She replied, her voice distant and a bit muffled. Inoue blinked, really confused as to why this girl was talking about marsh mellows and cream cheese.

"Uhhh…" Inoue replied as she looked around. "Oh! I get it! She must be talking about that new anime show…what is it called again? Comet? Yeah that must be it! I mean there is a guy obsessed with marsh mellows…though where she got the cream cheese…." Inoue convinced herself as she trailed off of her sentence, then moved to go and sit down on the plush couch in front of the TV.

&

Ichigo looked around his dark room and sighed. 'Figures…Ishida and Chad are already asleep. Maybe I should go to sleep as well but…I just can't…shake this feeling. What is it? Gah this is so frustrating!' Ichigo thought to himself as he ruffled his orange hair.

"So…you decided to come back after all? I thought that you might have been seduced into staying…" Came a soft voice from behind himself. Ichigo whirled around and looked at the silhouette if the person, not really recognizing who it was.

"Who the hell are you to talk, bub?" He replied coldly as he pushed the figure back a little bit with his finger.

"Kurosaki-kun, it's just me. Don't freak out…me as in Keigo I mean….yeah…" The figure replied as he backed away from the taller young man. Ichigo grunted in frustration the crossed his arms over his bare chest.

"Leave me alone, Keigo. All I want to do is watch TV then go to sleep," Ichigo sighed as he pushed a protesting Keigo out the door, then locked it behind the young man so that he couldn't get back in.

"Hmm…Ichigo, it looks as though you spent quite a while in Rukia-san's room. You didn't do anything, did you?" Ichigo turned around to look at Ishida who just happened to be sitting up in his bed, an eyebrow raised and the lamp next to him on.

"I don't want to talk about it…" He grunted as he made his way over to the couch and sat down, making sure not to sit down on Chad's sleeping form. A chill raced down his spine as he picked up the remote and turn on the TV, making sure the volume was turned down so if Ishida decided to go back to sleep, he would be able to. He watched the strange animated characters dart across the screen, one holding what looked like a huge butcher knife and another holding a packet of…."Marsh mellows! What the hell?" Ichigo quizzically asked as he chuckled, a bit amused at the strange show.

"Next time on Comet! Will Regenki ever admit his true feelings for Kira? Or will the two just live in denial for the rest of their lives? And will Mojo ever get his marsh mellows back? Who knows….Stay tuned for the next ingenious installment of Comet!" The announcer guy said as the screen showed what would happen next time. The shows ending theme came on and Ichigo found himself actually being able to relate to the song, even though he knew that it was completely random and stupid.

"This is freakin' weird…" Ichigo commented as he pushed the up button only to find more anime on the next station.

"Last time on Drago----"

"Boring…" Ichigo muttered as he flipped the channel, cutting the TV off of what it was going to say. The next few channels were just the same until he got even more lazy and didn't feel like pressing the button.

"If you've ever experienced hair loss from any part of your body, you should buy this product. Insta-Grow will grow back all of your lost hair in only one day! Amazing! It's simple, just apply it to the spot that is loosing hair then just add water! Easy!" The lady on the infomercial said as a bottle was put up on the screen with a phone number. Ichigo looked at the TV weird then began to chuckle.

"It really works! I had lost all of my hair and now, I don't have to wear a wig, only a toupee! It really really works!" The guy exclaimed on the TV. Ichigo began to laugh, for the word toupee just made him want to roll around on the floor giggling like a little school boy. The infomercial went on for about another 2 minutes and through the whole thing Ichigo was laughing his guts out.

"Oh man….that was great stuff…" He finally was able to say as he continued to watch the same channel.

"Fighting evil by moon light! Winning Lo---" Was all the TV could sing before Ichigo frowned and flipped the TV off.

"Too many little kid shows on right now…..too weird for me…." He muttered as he tossed the remote onto the coffee table and crawled into his bed, letting the comforts of sleep wash away all of his earlier stress and guilt.

&

AN: Oh yeah, and I bet no one can tell me who sung the song in Chapter 3, can they? Ha ha ha! No prizes if you guess! But try..because I wanna see if you people know your bands. Ah hahahahaha! I love it! That was great….I've seen those types of infomercials before too….it's quite sad, you know that? But hilarious none the less. I thought about doing a different type of infomercial….buuuut…some of you might not have the same twisted sense of humor that I have. Lol…well..ok…Chapter 4 completed. And don't worry, pretty soon people will start to show up….-shifty eyes- I'm not telling you who though….MUAHAHAHAHA! Ok as for advice….Never tell a teacher that he or she needs to get laid…it gets you into a lot of trouble. I mean A LOT. Lol…ok…Till Next Time!

Sakura P.O.D.


	5. Steamy Emotions

Well, here I am, back with another installment, and sorry it takes me a while to update….I am a very very busy person over the summer. I baby sit most of the time, and at my sisters house, I have no access to my chapters. Gomen! I also go on vacation for weeks at a time, and then band will begin to interfere as well…so please everyone be patient. Ok, anyhow! On with…the story….Mo and Chi….STOP THREATENING MEEE! -cries- AND! My computer is acting like a bitch, so….yeah…-- I can hardly update regularly anymore because of it. -kicks piece of junk- And it doesn't help that I'm having writers block. Oo

And just thought I'd mention…INOUE DOES NOT HAVE A BLACKBELT, NOR IS SHE THE EQUIVILENT OF ONE! (That is not a shout, just emphasising. I'm not mad.) Tatsuki taught her the basics, kinda. Inoue has no will to fight, and she does NOT want to hurt anyone. So she wouldn't be good in that kind of thing. You must have misread, for I certainly for one, have not. I even got Miss K to vouch for me. And, not only that, of course Rukia is going to have contradicting feelings! She doesn't know what is happening to herself, and it's all new and frightening to her. I know that at times they may be a bit OOC, but I'm only doing the best I can, so hang with me, guys…I don't want to have Chi and Mo's plans come to pass…

Disclaimer: Just you wait….one day I'll own Bleach! And there's nothing' you girls can do about it! HAHAHAHA! Ok well….psycho side taking over…I don't own Bleach….yet….

Chapter 5 Steamy Emotions

The next morning was like any other to Ichigo. The birds chirped merrily outside the window's, the sun peeked over the horizon, and the comforting snore of Kon was routine. Ichigo rubbed away some sleep as he crawled out of his bed and groggily stalked over to the kitchen where he smelled some fresh coffee. He grabbed himself a mug and poured the black liquid into it, the aroma making him a little more aware. He walked past the phone, where a little familiar stuffed animal slept soundly, his loud snores shattering what would be silence.

"Mornin' Kon…" Ichigo sighed as he glanced briefly at the little guy. He walked all the way over to the coffee table, placed his mug on it then sat down before he realized that Kon wasn't supposed to be there.

"KON!" He yelled as he jumped up, the startled lion thing falling off of the counter. The orange haired boy looked at the thing shocked.

"Murphenglizen!" Kon replied as he stood up and rubbed his head. His little black eyes slowly met those of Ichigo's, an innocent smile on his face.

"What…in the hell are you doing here!" Ichigo said, his voice low and threatening.

"It was Nee-san's idea! She stuffed me in the bag!" The little lion said as it began to back up towards the door, preparing to make a dash for it if need be. Ichigo's scowl returned again as he picked him up and walked out the door, shutting it softly behind himself.

"Why did Rukia follow me, Kon?" He asked as he put the mod down on the ground as soon as he shut the door, feeling as though it was safer to ask out side of the room, so that Ishida couldn't hear him.

"You don't know?" Kon asked quizzically, making it seem as though it was obvious.

"No, I don't know. If I did, then I wouldn't be asking you, now would I?" He grunted, sitting down on the ground, his back against Rukia's door.

"Well…actually….she never specified that. She was acting kinda strange though when she arrived here," Kon said, trying to find an answer to Ichigo's question.

"Oh…."

"I'm sorry I am of no assistance to you," The bear/lion sighed as he watched Ichigo stand up, turning to Rukia's door.

"It's not your fault…." He replied softly as he opened it and walked in, hoping that Inoue was awake. What he found instead was Rukia trying to make her way around the kitchen, her hand clamped tightly over her shoulder. She winced a little, not noticing Ichigo enter once more, for she was too engrossed in trying to make the coffee pot work. The orange haired teen muffled a little chuckle as he hid around a corner, watching Rukia's pitiful, but none the less entertaining, attempts.

"Damn thing…why won't you work!" She exclaimed as she pushed a button, earning a grinding noise from the machine. "Don't make me kill you," She threatened the inanimate object. She flipped a switch this time and was rewarded with coffee spraying her. She flipped it again with a growl, preparing to leave the cursed machine. "You've won this time…." She muttered as she grabbed a towel and wiped herself off with it.

Ichigo slowly crept up behind her and placed his hand on her good shoulder, then whispered into her ear, "Quite a show there. I think that machine's love you…" Upon feeling the contact she jerked a little, then twirled around to face him, a scowl on her face.

"Shut up Ichigo. And just because I'm sick, doesn't mean that you have the right to sneak up behind me and startle me…." She grunted as she pushed past him, making her way into the bathroom. She bent down into the sink, splashing cool water on her face, in attempts to wake herself up. Ichigo followed her, his scowl taking over once more. He let out a sigh as he leaned against the wall, closing his eyes, swimming in his sea of thoughts once more.

"Sorry…I just wanted to see if you were doing alright…" He said, a little bit dreamily. He pushed his fingers through his unruly orange hair as he opened his eyes once more, just to find Rukia looking up at him, her expression saying in a sarcastic manner, "That's believable…" He looked back at her, shrugging.

"What?"

"Don't what me…."

"What'd I do?"

"I don't know, but I'll find something….."

"Yeah well…if you're going to be that way, then maybe I should just go and tell all of our friends about your run in with Mr. Coffee-Maker," Ichigo said slyly. Rukia's ears turned a little red as she averted her gaze down towards the ground. She wrinkled her nose as she held her breath. Ichigo looked down at her, a bemused look upon his face.

"N-not…" She began, but looked up into his eyes and just stopped, her face beginning to grow red. 'What the hell is wrong with me?' She thought to herself as she attempted to move away from him, but couldn't.

Something inside of Ichigo's chest began to grow warm as he also looked at her, his head and heart contradicting each other once again. He slowly took a step forward, swallowing hard when he put his hand on her good shoulder. Ever so slowly, he began to bend down, the battle inside of him continuing to rage on. He could feel her warm breath on his lips, their noses practically touching. She slowly closed her eyes, waiting…and unbeknownst to her, she would be waiting for a long time, for at that particular moment, Kon decided to run in, laughing madly.

"Nee-san! LOOKY LOOKY!" He yelled, but then stopped as he looked at the two's position. Ichigo felt his face grow red as he suddenly jumped back, putting distance between him and her.

"A-a-a-a-a-a-anyways Rukia! I was going to invite you guys to go to the mall with us later on! Drop by after you've discussed the matter," Ichigo stuttered, a bit nervous. He looked around and tried to walk out the door casually, though he knew that he looked like a spaz. He walked out of her room hurriedly and made sure to lock Kon in with her, so that he wouldn't have to hear his jeers.

Rukia watched him leave, her cheeks crimson. "That did not just…" She began to whisper to herself when all of a sudden her eyes fell upon the furry little…..man…thing. She blinked a few times, then chuckled nervously.

"Ooooooooooooh! I see….." Kon tantalized (What the freak? Where the hell did that word come from? Oo) knowingly. Rukia looked at him, her eyes hard and some what scary.

"You will NOT tell anyone about this. Besides…there wasn't really anything to tell….I mean….he was only…uh…inspecting a fleck of dirt that had some how managed to make it's way onto my face," She lied as she slowly stepped towards the mod, a some what sinister look in her eyes. Kon looked up at her, a little fearful.

"It didn't look like that to me at all, Nee-san…" He stated truthfully as he began to back away, knowing it best NOT to taunt her at the moment. He grinned innocently, a chill racing down his spine. Rukia continued to advance towards him slowly.

"Oh really?" She asked, the blush on her face deepening a little bit more. Kon nodded his head, but then yipped when Rukia hit him on the top of his head.

"I didn't see anything!" He whimpered as he shrunk back, his hands on top of his head. He cowered away from her, but then looked up when he heard someone's foot steps.

"Rukia-san…..what are you doing?" A certain red-headed teen asked as she looked from the cowering Kon to the some what sinister Rukia. The dark haired girl smiled, then smoothed down her hair, trying to cool down her face a little.

"Nothing…." She replied as she bent down and picked Kon up, then handed him to Inoue. "I had a stow away…" She chuckled, but then stopped when Kon looked back at her sharply.

"You were the one who stuffed me in that hot bag, Nee-san!" Kon whined as he clung to Inoue, slightly frightened of Rukia at the present moment. Blinking, Inoue looked down at him, her innocent features mixed with confusion.

"Inoue, Ichigo came over and asked if we all would like to go to the mall with him and the guys later on today. I wouldn't mind going…." Rukia said, changing the subject while she turned on the sink faucet and washed her hands under the cool water.

"Oh! That would be a grand idea!" A voice purred from the door way. Looking up, slightly startled, Rukia found Ayako, Chei, Tatsuki, and Chizuru all standing there, smiles upon their faces. Twitching a little, Inoue turned around to look at the bunch, a startled expression on her face.

"Then….you would like to go?" She said after she had regained her voice.

"Yes…what do you know? Maybe we'll find some….familiar faces while we're there, right Rukia-san?" Ayako slyly replied, flicking some of her hair back behind her shoulder. With a hard glare, Rukia turned off the water, the dried her hands on the nearby hand towel.

"What ever are you implying, Ayako-_san_?" She asked back, putting mock emphasis on the word 'san.' Shooting another angry glare at Ayako, she pushed past the girl, making her way towards Ichigo's room.

"Oooohh. Nee-san going to go and get her kiss from Ichigo?" Came the taunting voice of Kon, who was now on the ground cowering behind Inoue's legs, realizing his mistake. Rukia stopped dead in her tracks, feeling all eyes on her. With a growl, she turned around and stomped back to him, picked him up and stretched his face out, an annoyed expression on her face.

"What did we just talk about Kon?" She asked threateningly quiet, a hand closing in around his throat. With a small whimper of apology, Kon kicked out at her, hitting her elbow, making her drop him in succession. She winced a little grabbing her elbow.

"Nee-san! It was only a joke!" Kon whimpered behind Inoue once more. All of the other girls stood shocked, not knowing what had come over their Death God friend. Grumpily, she pushed past an amused looking Ayako once more and walked out her hotel room door and into Ichigo's, slamming his door when she entered.

Ishida jumped five feet in the air as the sudden slam was heard. He looked over to Rukia and blinked behind his glasses. Chad, also slightly startled by the slam, looked out from behind the kitchen counter, his gaze also set upon their female companion.

"Where is Ichigo…?" Rukia demanded, her voice cold and rigid as she galumphed into the room, looking around for the boy. Ishida looked over to Chad and gulped, knowing that silence would mean death. "I will not say it again!" She exclaimed when all that met her ears was silence.

"In the bathroom, Rukia….but I don't---" Ishida began but was cut off by a rough "Thank you" from the girl, then he watched her barge into the bathroom, the steam from the shower seeping out of the open door. Ichigo stood outside of the shower stall, as naked as he was the day he was born into the world. A look of bewilderment and shock crossed his face as his eyes met those of Rukia, who in return looked at him, her face turning red. Closing her eyes, she tried to move backwards so she could give the boy, in all of his naked valor, some privacy so he could make himself decent, but found that she couldn't move her feet from the ground. Slowly, her eyes opened, her gaze slowly dropping, inch by inch by inch. Ichigo just stood there, equally as shocked, then realized what his current situation was. Letting out a cry, he grabbed a nearby towel and wrapped it around his waist before Rukia could see anything.

"Uh…Wewouldliketogoandthankyouforasking!" She said in one huge breath, then backed out of the door, slamming it behind herself. Rukia coughed a little as she began to walk away from the door, a feeling in the pit of her stomach surfacing. What was this feeling? Forcing her face to cool down, she turned to Ishida and smiled a little, though not a happy to see you smile, more of the, "I'm going to kill you in a dark alley," smile.

"I tried to warn you…" He said with a shrug as he watched her expression darken a little. Fearing the worst, he put his hands up defensively. When he did not feel anything touch/hurt/brush against him, he brought his hands down just to see a plastic stepping stool coming for his head. With not enough time to move out of the way, the object pegged him in the skull, making him fall backwards.

"Shut up, Ishida," Rukia grumbled as she stalked out of the room and back to her own to get dressed and ready.

&-

Ishida looked around the room after he heard the room door slam. That went rather well in his opinion. He thought for sure that Rukia was going to murder him. Instead he got by with a big lump on his head. That was great!

"You shouldn't have done that, Ishida…" Came Chad's booming voice from the kitchen, the clank of numerous pots and pans being heard through out the hotel room.

"I didn't do anything, Chad. Just simply warned her," He replied lazily as he laid back on the couch, staring at the white ceiling, his eyes slowly closing. A crash was heard from the bathroom as he just began to doze off, startling him fully awake.

"DAMMIT! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!" Yelled an oh so familiar ginger haired young man as he came out of the bathroom in nothing but a towel. Sitting up, Ishida looked at him, an amused look on his face.

"Be calm, Ichigo. At least the girls are coming with us," He said, trying to make his friends mood a little more bearable. Stomping his way over to his things, Ichigo threw his clothes out of his bag and began to pick out proper attire for their little outing that they all were going on.

"Murph…" He snorted as he picked up a black tank top that had a crossbones on the back. He slipped on the shirt, then began to look for some suitable pants. Digging through his bag some more, he found some baggy kaki colored shorts. He let the towel drop, grabbing a green pair of silk like boxers that said, "Kiss me I'm Irish!" on the legs. He slipped those on as well, then slowly put his shorts on, looking around for his belt.

"Don't be so bitter, Ichigo," Ishida sighed as he also stood up walking over to his bag of things. Ishida looked for some clothes as well, but stopped as Ichigo pulled on his black belt, a small blush on his face. "Are…you blushing!" The black haired youth asked incredulously.

"NO!" Ichigo replied roughly as he sat down on the bed, his back to his friend. Slowly, he pulled on his green socks and laced up his low top blue Chuck Taylor's.

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"Positive?"

"Yeees."

"Absolutely, positively, one hundred---" Ishida was cut off by a yell from Ichigo.

"YES! I AM SURE!" With that said, he stood up and walked out the door, wanting to just get away from everyone at the moment. Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he walked across the way to Rukia's room, standing outside of the door, unsure if he should go in or not. "What am I doing here?" He sighed to himself as he began to walk away, but stopped, thinking to himself.

&-

As Rukia stomped back into her room, Inoue and all of the other girls looked at her in curiosity. Was she blushing!

"So…did you get that kiss, Nee-san?" Kon asked slyly as he inched away from her, knowing that if he should die now, he would die happy.

"Get ready….We're leaving in 5 minutes," She stated dully, completely ignoring Kon's jeers. Everyone looked at her blinking as she walked over to her own bag and began to change, certainly not in the mood to talk at the moment. Slowly, but surely, everyone filed out of the room to go get ready for the day.

"Rukia…are you alright?" Inoue asked her as she made her way back to her own bed and also began to change, a small concerned look upon her face.

'Did…that really just happen! What is wrong with me? Why was I so compelled to look…uhg!' She thought to herself, a small smirk crossing her features without her even realizing it. Picking up a dark purple tank top, she examined the piece of clothing, debating on whether to wear it or not. Nodding her head, she slipped it on, a murderous looking kitty with a knife on the back of the tank with the words above it saying, "Here kitty kitty kitty kitty!" She then pulled on some denim Capri's, rolling up the ends so that they almost looked like longer shorts.

"Ruuuukiaaaaa!" Inoue stated as she waved a hand in front of the death gods face, making the dark haired teen start.

"W-what!" She cried out in surprise as she turned around to look at Inoue, who was sporting a white short sleeved shirt with the Comet Logo on the front and a bag of marsh mellows on the back. Wearing a white mini skirt and flip flops ( thongs….ha ) to contrast the shirt.

"You ready to go, for the last time?" She inquired, smiling some. Rukia nodded her head, then quickly pulled on some socks and slipped a pair of low tops on as well. Grabbing her wallet, she made her way to the door, making sure that she had the small little brass key so that they would be able to get back in.

"You seem out of it, Rukia," Inoue observed as they walked out of the door to meet their friends down in the lobby.

"No…just tired," She lied, shrugging her shoulders. Placing her small wallet in the pocket of her pants she began to walk down the stairs, convinced that they were a lot safer than those evil metal contraptions that moved up and down. By the time they reached the lobby, Inoue was slumped over, leaning on Rukia for support.

"I never want to see stairs again…" She said through pants. Chuckling a little, Rukia half drug half carried Inoue over to the group, noticing that they were the last to be there.

"Where have you been!" Chizuru chided while she filed her nails with a nail file. Shrugging her shoulders she forced a smile, avoiding all eye contact with Ichigo.

"Let's go…who's going with who?" Inoue piped up, a huge smile on her face.

"Well, all girls in my car, except one because last time it was kinda cramped. So…Rukia, we have volunteered you to go with the guys," Chizuru began, with a huge grin. "We'll meet in the food court, so don't wonder off to far!"

As the bespectacled girl said this, Rukia's eyes got huge, knowing that something like this would happen. She stared after the girls as they began to walk away, Ayako turning around and giving her a cold sneer. Oh…she hated that girl. She really did.

"Come!" She heard someone say, then felt something drop on her shoulders just to find out that Ichigo had put his hands there and was beginning to push her towards the jeep.

"What are you doing?" She asked him, her tone even and seeming to poke at curiosity. He looked down at her, an eyebrow raised.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm pushing you to the jeep, on account that you spaced out for a few minutes and didn't even move. Come on," He explained to her as he continued to steer her through the crowds of people. Looking up at him still, she saw the slight hue of pink developing on his cheeks, though decided that he must have just gotten himself sunburned out on the beach. Pfft. Ichigo wasn't, nay couldn't, be embarrassed. He was Ichigo!

Turning to get into the jeep, she shrugged that thought away, not really wishing to have those thoughts at the moment. The ride to the mall was quick and painless, but oh…she didn't know what waited beyond those doors. She had no idea that someone quite familiar to her lurked the mall, his mind on one thing and one thing only.

&-

Alright, that chapter was a little struggled, so it sucked. I don't like it. But ah well, I have to have it to advance my story. Well, my advice is…do not go to Chi-chan's birth day parties. You'll be tricked into eating moldy things. OO Well, Till Next Time, drive safely and Ja ne!

Sakura Peace Out Dude! V


	6. Strike One!

**Sorry for the wait. I had no access to a computer in my absence…well…one with a floppy drive anyways. Please don't beat me. –cries- Chapter 7 is already in the works.**

Chapter 6 - Strike one! Fistfights and Sketchy Demeanors

Oh what a wonderful day today seemed to be holding for our little band! The sun was high in the air, beating down upon the assemblage of teens, their brows sweating in the heat that hung high in the atmosphere. Not even a little breeze was present, leaving the air still and stagnant. Yes. This would be a great day indeed.

People buzzed around the crowded parking lot, obviously looking for the sweet relief of the air-conditioned indoor shopping facility, along with the countless number of ice cream and beverage vendors. The murmur of the crowds flocking to the entrances reached Rukia's ears as she somewhat confusedly looked around. What in the world was this place? Sure she knew what a store was, but she had never been on an excursion to the mall. Did they have juice boxes there as well? Well whatever they had there, she was quite eager to find out. It must be something worth while for all of these people to be rushing inside. Staring at the huge building from the middle of the parking lot, she blinked.

'Wow…' She thought to herself as she stared in awe at the all-mighty place of trade; modern days' bizarre I guess one would call it. Oblivious in her own little world, Rukia didn't see the slowly approaching car, it's white sheen reflecting in the brilliant sunlight, making any on looker seem to go blind. Honking his horn at her, Rukia jumped, letting out a yelp of shock. She whirled around, her eyebrows drawn furiously, her disposition obviously getting the best of her.

"What the heck was that for jerk!" She yelled to the young man sitting in the drivers' seat. He glared back at her, his gangster attire making Rukia raise a brow.

"Yo, bitch! Move outta the way, before I get the whole hood down here to shoot yo ass!" He yelled back, his ridiculously huge necklace hanging out the window, looking almost as if it should be too heavy for someone to put around his or her neck. Anger forgotten, Rukia stared at the 'bling bling' and tried to stifle her laughter in her hand. How could she take a guy seriously when he was talking like that and wearing freakin' 100 pound weights around his neck?

"Watchu laffin' at, punk?" He enunciated, anger beginning to seep into his words.

"I just…hahaha….wanted to let you…..hahahahahahaha…know that you've got…HAHAHAHAHA…..You've got an ugly shiny thing on your neck," She innocently said as she clutched her sides, pain beginning to erupt there from all of her laughter. Obviously having enough, the young man got out of his car, his pants nearly sagging to his knees.

"You have a problem wit me, bitch?" He asked her as he slowly walked up to her and grabbed her by the collar of her shirt. Laughter ensuing, she managed to shake her head no before she saw is drooping pants and burst out into even worse fits. "What? Youz haven't seen a real hardcore gangsta before?" He queried, now obviously confused.

"Imma gonna shoot yo ass if you don't stop!" He yelled in her face, his grip tightening upon her tank top. Everything seemed to happen at once. Suddenly Ichigo was there, a deep scowl upon his face, his fist now planted in the 'gangstas' nose.

"Pfft. If you have to go and pick on girls, then you must be truly pathetic," Ichigo grumbled as he watched the young man hit the ground like a sack of potatoes. Slowly, he turned around, facing the direction of the mall. Grabbing Rukia's wrist, Ichigo began to pull her in that direction, his mood souring with each passing second. Stomping his way through the crowds of people, the orange-haired teen drug Rukia through the glass doors and into the shopping center. Cool air instantly rushed out to meet her face as the door swung open, the huge fountain directly ahead making her sigh with awe.

"Yeah well don't think too highly of places like this. A lot of crime and villainous actions are committed here," Ichigo had to open his mouth didn't he? He just had to ruin Rukia's fascinations. Grimacing a little at his comments, the former death god looked at her feet, her companion tugging on her wrist, telling her to move it.

"You don't have to be such a kill-joy," She muttered under her breath. That was one of the phrases that she had learned here in this world, and she seemed to like it. The word just had a certain ring to it. Kill-joy! Another phrase she particularly liked was 'Bite me!' She found it amusing that someone would say such a thing.

"Ohh mommy! Look at this!" A child yelled, his small voice wafting through the air to reach Rukia's keen ears. Looking at the scene from the corner of her eyes, she watched the young woman bend down, a warm smile upon her face, brown silky locks falling perfectly into place. What ever else was said, Rukia did not know, for at that particular moment, her vision was obscured by a huge column that was decoratively placed in the shopping center. Smiling slightly, she continued to walk, her eyes now burning into the back of the young man in front of her.

Just as she was about to open her mouth, a familiar voice yelled to them from the food court, the aroma's of deep fried, fattening goodness reaching the death gods nose. "HEEEEYYY! ICHIGO!" The yell resounded, bouncing off of the tiled floors and the smooth, undecorated surfaces.

Closing his eyes tightly, he slowly turned to look at Chizuru. "No need to yell! BAKA!" The last part he shouted back, the look of annoyance once again growing upon his face. The bespectacled teen smiled as she brought her arm down from the sky, now resuming her death grip on Inoue's poor arm. Completely oblivious to Chizuru, Inoue was speaking with Ishida, her innocent smile accompanied with a small giggle. He had obviously said something funny.

"What is this Ichigo?" Rukia attempted to ask her 'escort' of sorts. She was looking at an ATM, the cash machine's various amount of colors catching her attention. She waited for his answer, but soon realized that he wasn't going to give her one. "Fine then, jerk," She whispered quietly to herself as she began to try and wriggle out of his vice like grip, his fingernails beginning to bite into her flesh.

Sighing, Ichigo pulled Rukia over to the group, not even acknowledging that she was still with him. Huffing at being ignored, Rukia finally was able to wrench her wrist away from his angry grasp. Why was he so angry? What had she done to him to deserve such treatment? Hurt, irate and perplexed, she began to stomp away from her friends, not really in the mood to have everyone around her all at once.

Sadly, no one noticed her storming off except for Ayako, whose sinister eyes had never left her peer's body. Smiling wryly to herself, she silently slipped out from the crowd, Chei following suit.

Everyone was preoccupied with concerns of his or her own. Chizuru was having a yelling bout with Ichigo and Tatsuki; who the winner will be, no one could tell. Inoue was talking with Ishida, a slight blush making it's way onto his pale completion, while Chad and the other two young men were talking about the latest Magic The Gathering tournament they had went to…oh wait. Chad was just listening; he had no interest in that sort of thing. Chaos had ensued not even 10 minutes of them all being together! A new record!

Meanwhile, Rukia hurried through the crowds of people, the techno music that blasted through some of the stores catching her attention, though she would turn away from it as soon as she heard it. Tears were stinging the back of her eyes as she looked at all of the people she passed, the happy couples making her heart twist violently in her body. She was confused. This usually cold, emotionless girl was experiencing something that had never been explained to her before. Sure she had felt love towards her brother and Renji, but this was an entirely different feeling. Her head was fuzzy and dizzy, her chest would grow increasingly warm, as though a fire had been lit in the deep darkness inside of her subconscious, driving away all of her doubts and fears. That's what it was like. At times it felt like someone was driving a dagger into her heart cavity, blood spurting from the open wound like a cascading waterfall, at others it felt like a soft hand was caressing her cheek tenderly, the slightest tickle sending her into a sweet state of bliss. So which was it? Pain? Or ardor?

Holding herself softly, Rukia sat down onto one of the many benches that were standing dormant in the center of the huge isle way. Frowning deeply, she looked at her feet, her purple Converse ragged and smudged with dirt. Letting out a forlorn sigh, she tore her gaze away, an angry voice screaming over guitar riffs, a bass, and a madly flailing drummer (and that's what he is…a drummer, not a percussionist). People in black clothing and piercings were entering the store from which the man's voice was echoing, the dark interior of the store seeming to match Rukia's current mood. Deciding that she needed to get her mind off of things, she ventured into the store, her innocence attracting one of the clerks, his pierced lips curved into a smile.

"Welcome, can I help you?" He asked her, his raspy voice making his customer shudder inwardly.

"No," Rukia replied back blankly, her own voice cold and emotionless. Completely caught off guard, the young man looked at her with a bit of shock in his brown eyes. He didn't think that she would be so cold!

"Oh…All right then," he said back, backing away from her, a startled look upon his face. The dark-haired teen noticed his discomfort, his situation not really appealing to her. She didn't have time to deal with people at this moment in time, she was confused enough as it was. Slowly, she moved through out the store, looking at all of the T-shirts and clothing items that they sold there. The pants all had tons of pockets, zippers, and chains hanging off of them, making the person look as though they were wearing a straight jacket for their legs.

Blinking a bit naively, she picked up a whip wondering why in the world a store would be carrying a weapon? Didn't this world have a ban against this stuff in public?

"I see you're into that rough stuff," That raspy clerk's voice whispered into her ear. What was this guys problem! Jumping like 3 feet into the air, Rukia dropped the item. Coughing a little, she turned to face the young man, a goofy smile plastered onto his face.

"Rough….stuff…?" She inquired, not quite sure what the young man was getting at.

"Don't play coy with me, Miss," He joked, raising his eyebrows suggestively. She was thoroughly confused at this time; Rukia cracked the whip, her experienced hands knowing exactly what to do. The clerk's smile didn't fade as he extended his hand, his black hair's tips bleached white, and spiked up all…cool like.

"I'm Shiang Kai, nice to meet you," He greeted, the piercings on his ears catching Rukia's attention for a split second. Brought back to earth, she looked at his hand and grasped it, her usual scowl planted on her face.

"I'm Kuchiki Rukia. It's a pleasure," She said out of amenity. "Now can you explain to me what you meant earlier?" She added, entirely serious. Kai twitched as he looked at the whip in her hand and brought a hand to his forehead, now realizing that she is serious. He looked at the ground, running his fingers through his gelled hair, not a strand moving out of place.

"J-just forget about it, alright?" He stammered with an embarrassed look upon his face. Shrugging her shoulders a little, Rukia dropped the subject until…

"What he meant, Rukia-san, was that you like sex rough," A voice whispered almost seductively in her ear, the person's breath tickling her skin. Whirling around quickly, Rukia glared at her 'seductress.'

"Dammit, Ayako-san. Why don't you just butt out? Leave me the hell alone!" She growled lowly at her, eyes flashing dangerously. Kai looked at Ayako, blinking some at the new comer.

"Really, Ayako-chan, you shouldn't try and seduce Ichigo-kun's prize," Chei boredly injected into the conversation while she examined her nails.

"You're not single?" Kai asked stupidly as he looked at Rukia expectantly.

"Of course I am! Ichigo is a stuck up dolt who likes to call his friends names and ignore them," Rukia croaked out, tears forming in her eyes. She was getting angrier and angrier with each passing second.

"Really? Does that mean I can have him, Rukia-san? You giving up on him just like you gave up on Renji? Just like you left him to die at the mercy of Aizen?" Eyes wide with shock, Rukia looked at Ayako.

Fists clenched now, Rukia gritted her teeth. She had not left him there intentionally. He was a grown man, he could take care of himself.

"Wait…what is all this talk about?" Kai asked, his confused tone making Chei look at him, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

"You bring shame to the Kuchiki family, Rukia! Coward!" Ayako taunted, her delicate semblance soft in the dim light.

"I am not a coward!" Rukia retorted, beginning to finally snap.

"Just so you know, Ichigo obviously doesn't give a rats ass about you, so you might as well go and take your mediocre appearance and personality somewhere where it's wanted. I know a very nice brothel that would accept even a plain creature like you," She continued, not noticing Rukia's slow approach.

Before anything else could happen, the former death god was on top of Ayako pounding the snot out of her. Punch after punch, the string of ferocious blows didn't seem to stop as the truth pierced through her heart. How could she have been so blind? Suddenly, white lights erupted in her vision as she felt something connect with the base of her neck, Chei now in the brawl.

"She's right you know," She simply added with a shrug, a bored look still upon her face. Ayako forgotten, Rukia crouched low, trying to get under Chei's guard, who parried her punch perfectly. With a counter attack, Rukia did a back flip, catching the girls chin with the top of her shoe. Chei was unable to block the blow and stumbled back, blood trickling out of the corner of her mouth because she had bitten her tongue.

"You bitch!" Ayako growled as she wiped blood away from her nose, her foot now being sent to Rukia's head. Aware of her new opponent, Rukia brought her guard up just in time, the force of the kick making her stumble a little because of the momentum that was passed. The two friends were now ganging up on her, one behind and the other in front. Beginning to tire, Rukia looked from something that she could use as a weapon, anything. That's when a metal rode caught her attention. Smiling, she blocked another kick, then feigned as though she was going to throw a punch at Chei, but instead used her forward momentum to roll and grab the pole, the slick weapon poised in her battle worn hands.

"Mediocre, huh?" She mused quietly as she suddenly lunged out with the pole, hitting Ayako square in the stomach which made her ram into her companion. "Let me tell you something! If this is how everyone feels, then I'll just leave!" She yelled at them, the pole barely visible as it's speed increased with her anger. Quickly, she spun her body around, catching both of their faces with the very tip of the rode.

The two fell, groaning out of pain. "Just to let you know, you just got massacred by a girl with a hurt arm, hope you've realized whom the superior one is now," Rukia growled as she threw the pole down, then looked around the store. Kai stood there a shocked expression upon his face. He had never seen someone fight like that before.

"I apologize," She said with a small bow as she turned to walk out the door, a bit of blood beginning to trickle down her cheek. People continued to stare, the gothic teens all staring at her with admiration.

"Would you like to go out sometime?" Kai blurted out, catching her wrist before she could step out the door entirely. Not sure of what to say, Rukia turned to him and gave him a little smile.

"I'm staying at the Shining Seashell. Ja ne," She stated as she broke his grip, walking away casually as though no fight had happened. Smiling all goofy like, Kai waved to her as she left, not knowing that his encounter with her would get 10 times weirder in the next 5 seconds.

"GOD DAMN THAT FUCKIN' SHINAGAMI! DAMN HER! RUKIA, YOU BETTER WATCH YOUR BACK," Came the angry shouts of Ayako, the seer having quite the time untangling herself from Chei, a small throwing knife now held in her hand. Finally free of her companion, Ayako ran out into the crowded shopping center, her sights set upon Rukia, her back turned towards her. Taking this perfect opportunity, Ayako threw the knife with deadly accuracy. With lightening fast reflexes, the weapon was caught between two of Rukia's fingers, her body twisted so that she could catch it in time and see her assailant.

"I have not the time for such trivial things," She growled as she tossed the weapon aside, the crowds of people all looking at the scene, shocked. A path was between Ayako and Rukia, the empty space seeming odd to particular young man that stepped out between the two, his face shrouded with shadow. His build was stout and proud, his strapping arms seeming to bulge with pure muscle. This young man was not nearly as big as Chad, but he looked almost as though he could be as tall. He was wearing a plain pair of baggy jeans, the tops of gray and black Vans sticking out beneath the folds of denim. To cover his abdomen was a simple white tank top, his sleek muscles rippling as he moved. On top of all that, his red hair was spiked slightly, reminding Rukia of someone that she had once known.

"Oi. Didn't you're mother teach you manners? It's not nice to attack a lady when her back is turned," His cool and relaxed voice drifted through the air to the former death gods ears, her heart skipping a beat. Slowly, the young man turned to face her, the tattoo's on his face and deep eyes making Rukia loose all feeling in her legs.

"R-Renji?" She managed to ask him, her voice seeming foreign in her own ears.

Ayako now realized her situation and let her arm drop to her side, blinking stupidly. "Oh, you thought that I was actually attacking her?" She said with a small smile as she brought her arms high above her head, an alibi slowly formulating in her mind. "We were just shooting a scene for our Indie film, surely you've heard of those right?"

"How the hell do you explain the knife, Ayako!" Rukia countered, pointing decisively at the sharpened object. Slowly walking over to her and picking up the discarded item, Ayako quickly switched the real one out with a fake. She had been prepared for something like this to happen.

"Why, Rukia-san, it was a fake. Couldn't you tell?" She asked innocently, holding up the plastic replica.

"Whoa! Killer footage, Ayako-chan! This'll be soo sweet+A guaranteed!" Chei exclaimed as she came out with a camcorder, acting as though she had recorded the whole thing.

"Uhrm…excuse me. WHAT HAPPENED TO MY TOTALLY COOL ENTERANCE!" Renji yelled, wanting to be noticed as well an annoyed expression upon his face. Smiling at her friend, the black-haired teen launched herself at Renji, a true smile now placed upon her lips. "AH!" He yelled as he nearly fell over because of the massive glompage.

"I missed you!" She chuckled as she let go of him, backing up to take in his appearance. Wait. How did he get here? Was her brother with him? Before she could ask any questions, she heard the sound of security slowly approaching.

"Halt! Hands in the air!" One of the officers commanded, pointing his gun at Ayako, Rukia, and Renji. Doing as they were told, Renji found it quite fascinating how people worked here in this mall place. A person says halt, and you are immediately supposed to comply. And just WHAT was that black thing pointed at him?

"No need to fret, officer. We were just recording a scene in our home movie. We even asked the manager of this store if it would be all right, and he said it would be just fine. You can ask him," the green eyed, black haired Seer explained as she dropped the plastic knife.

"Its true!" Kai piped up, not wanting for his future date to get thrown in jail. He smiled at the officer and let out a sigh.

"You should have informed us earlier! Then we wouldn't have had to run all the way down here," One of the younger officers complained, running his fingers through his wavy brown hair. Slowly, they all holstered their guns and began to leave, believing what the young man Kai had said.

"This is not the first time something like this has happened. Usually there are a lot of people who want to film here, since it's located in a such a perfect place," Kai explained when Chei had inquired about them not asking much.

Frustrated once again with Ayako, Rukia turned on her heel and began to storm off in another direction, gloom beginning to settle in. "Don't you dare follow me," She growled over her shoulder as she heard someone step towards her. She was in no mood. Sure, she was happy to see Renji, but she just didn't want to be bothered. With that entire scene behind her, Rukia was left to brood over her feelings as she sat down on the edge of the fountain that she had seen earlier. Looking into its cool depths she watched her reflection ripple and break as people threw pennies for good luck into the water.

"I wish for once my life wasn't so hectic," She murmured to herself, the presence of a sinister personage not even registering within her mind.

&-

Meanwhile, the rest of the gang had gone their separate ways, Ichigo all by himself, looking for the missing Rukia. Inoue was with Ishida, Tatsuki, and Chizuru. He could hear a little bit of commotion coming from the general direction of Hot Topic, and decided to make his way there. As he walked there though, he got sidetracked, the temptation to go into Fye too great of a challenge.

"Hmm…" He whispered to himself as he picked up an album by one of his particularly favorite bands, Within Temptation. The band always seemed to make him feel happy.

_I need you're arms around me,_

_I need to feel your touch…_

The song blared out over the intercom, the style that the singer was using quite similar to the song that Ichigo had heard when he was watching the rain pour down just yesterday. But unlike the last song, this one seemed to hold no purpose to his current situation.

_I need your understanding,_

_I need your love…so much_

The catchy baseline continued, the somewhat simple band beginning to draw Ichigo's attention. Listening intently to the lyrics, he frowned a little bit for it was starting to sound like some people he knew.

You tell me that you love me so 

_You tell me that you care_

_But when I need you Baby, (baby)_

_You're never there!_

Sighing some, Ichigo began to move towards the exit, knowing that he should resume his search, and he could hear that the commotion was dying down just a turn away.

_On the phone long long distance_

_Always through such strong resistance_

_And first you say,_

_You're too busy _

_I wonder if you even miss me._

_Never there._

_You're never there!_

_You're never ever ever ever there!_

_(Hey!)_

_Trumpet solo_

Just as the last note popped out of the bluesey trumpet, Ichigo walked out of the store, the song yanking at his heart a little too hard for his liking. Stuffing his hands into his shorts he walked to where the scene that had been made was.

"Oh. What's this then? What does it do? AHHH!" The familiar sound of Renji's voice made Ichigo break out into a run, the empty path still there, which means that the security guards had only just left. Upon seeing Ayako and Chei with him, the orange haired teen knew something was up.

"Baboon! Where's Rukia?" He grunted in greeting to Renji before he jumped right into what he needed. Shocked at seeing his rival in such a place, the red haired young man smirked a little as he discarded the little disposable camera that he had been playing with. The flash had gone off and scared him.

"Well looky here! Ichigo! You know…I wouldn't go and talk to her right now. She seemed pissed. What did you do to her!" Renji was jumping to conclusions and was now holding Ichigo by the scruff of his tank, his face contorted into rage. "If you hurt her, Ichigo, I will not hesitate to kill you." Well that was reassuring. Grunting, his scowl deepened as he planted his fist into his face, Renji letting go in succession. Straightening out his shirt, Ichigo gave him that looks that said, "you're so stupid."

"I didn't do anything to her---"

"Precisely why she is angry with you, Ichigo-kun. You ignored her," Ayako chimed in as she tried to act innocently. She didn't seem to have any serious injuries, and the ones that she DID have were hardly noticeable because of all the blush she had just applied. Finally realizing what he had done, the substitute death god pushed his fingers through his hair and let out a groan.

"Which way did she go?"

"I don't th----"

"WHICH WAY DID SHE GO!" Ichigo yelled, now doubly pissed, but not at Rukia. No. At himself. He was angry with himself. The two snapped to attention and pointed in the direction where their friend had gone. Stomping off to find her once again, Ichigo decided that he would have to apologize to her.

Back at the scene, comical tears cascaded down Renji's face as he squatted down and sat in the corner, pushing his index fingers together over and over again.

"What happened to being surprised? Am I just to be ignored?" Renji asked as the dark mist of gloom began to rise over his squatting form.

&-

A forlorn sigh left Rukia's lips as she dipped her hand into the cool water, breaking the serenity that it held. Deep in thought, she did not feel the presence of another behind her, which would cost her a lot.

"Well well well," Came a familiar voice, pulling her from her reminiscence. Startled, Rukia looked at the towering form of…

"N-niwa!" She exclaimed as she stood up, her fists raised anew. Her oculus' hard and filled with pure abhorrence. Her gaze drifted through the young mans' band and spotted a particular gangster that looked familiar. "YOU! You're in league with Niwa!" She exclaimed as she looked at the black haired teen, a cruel smile upon his lips.

"Giving my men more hard times, I see, Rukia," He jeered as he took a step closer to her. Man! Today just wasn't her day, was it? She didn't know who she would prefer at the moment; another fight with Ayako and Chei, or this creep Niwa. Taking a precarious step backwards, she waited for him to make his move.

"What do you want with me, Niwa. Leave me," She growled lowly, her eyes moving to his thugs. There were certainly more than there had been last time. This time she wasn't sure if her luck was going to be with her once again, for it didn't seem to be favoring her this particular day.

"Aww, you mean to tell me that you don't want to play?" He jeered at her as his men began to surround her. This defiantly was not looking good. The two of them were now in the center of the circle, men to her back, and sides, Niwa facing her, but men also behind him. What she would give to have her pole back at this particular moment. Taking a deep breath, Rukia swiftly made up her mind. She would have to break the circle.

Smirking just a little, Rukia was gone in the span of heartbeat. The men looked around frantically, knowing that if she gained the upper hand that there was no taking it back.

"Ack!" One man gagged, spit flying from his mouth as he spiraled backwards, a pained expression upon his face. Too startled to react, the man next to the first thug found Rukia in front of him, crouched low, then in one sweeping moment brought her elbow up to connect with his jaw, which made him bite his cheek. Using her momentum, Rukia grabbed onto his neck, brought herself around to his back and planted her knee right into his kidney. Eyes glazed over, the man fell to the tiled floor, unconscious. The men were starting to recover now from their seism, and one after the other were beginning to attack.

"DIE WENCH!" One yelled as he brought his clasped hands down, aiming for Rukia's skull. Fully expecting something like this, the shinagami side stepping to the right of the sloppy attack. The man stumbled forward, the perfect stepping stool for the black-haired teen. Pushing him down by jumping upon his neck, she didn't wait for him to even hit the ground before she was airborne again, this time in a back flip, though the person the kick intended for throwing up a block just in time. Not expecting a counter attack, the man let his guard down, smirking at her. He was shocked when he watched her complete the flip, then it seemed that her toe didn't even touch the stepping stool man before she was twirling into a front flip, hitting the top of the mans head hard with her heel. To pull off the rest of the combo, she allowed her big toe to once again touch the "stools" body before she suddenly rushed into a round house kick, knocking that man unconscious and also knocking another into the fountain. Looking around, Rukia stepped off of the thug and began her assault upon another crony.

This man, however, threw a punch at the quickly approaching death god right when she should have been in front of him. Confused as to why she wasn't there anymore, he felt a sharp pain erupt at the base of his neck, and felt the corners of his vision grow black. Rukia had jumped up at the last second and had brought her elbow to connect with the base of his neck, then using his shoulders as a sort of spring board, she placed both hands on them (doing a sort of hand stand) then launched herself away from him. Skidding on the ground, she quickly used her speed to bring herself around and kick the last thugs' feet out from underneath him. To make sure he was formally out cold, she delivered one final blow to his stomach, winding him and making him also drift to the clutches of nothingness. Standing in the midst of all the unconscious bodies, Rukia looked at Niwa, her shoulders shaking with rage. Was she actually…having fun beating these people into bloody pulps? Suddenly, that shake of rage turned into a shake of remorse and sadness as tears began to blind her. Her breath caught in her throat as she found the bench of the fountain and sat down on it. At this time, Niwa couldn't help but feel sorry for her. He didn't know what had happened, but the fact that he was highly infatuated with her made him begin to worry.

"H-hey. What's wrong?" He asked her, confused at her reaction. Most people would have had the opposite reaction and would still stand strong. But here she was, the look of loss upon her delicate features. Slowly, he walked over to her and sat down next to her, an eyebrow raised.

"Why do you continue to pester me. Can't you leave!" She managed to growl at him through her tears. Standing up suddenly, she pushed the young man into the fountain and ran.

'I have now taken my anger and pain out upon others. I should not even be allowed to call myself a shinagami. I have no right,' she thought to herself as she ran. Rukia ran blindly through the mall, finally crashing into a red flurry.

"Rukia-chan….is something wrong?" It was Inoue's voice. Quickly, Rukia picked herself up off of the ground and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"I'm fine," She said, her voice finally back to normal. Extending her hand, she pulled Inoue up off of the ground and patted her on the shoulder. "Sorry."

"YOU BITCH!" The shout of Niwa made Rukia's blood run cold as she looked at her friends, then in a desperate attempt to keep them out of her issues, she ushered them into the closest store. The pink and purple shades made Ishida blink.

"Uhm. Rukia-san, we're in Claire's…is there a reason?" He asked as he looked around, watching Inoue and Chizuru gush over how cute a little plushie was. Naturally, Tatsuki had her arms crossed and was trying to avoid the situation by acting all cool like.

"You guys are hopeless," She muttered under her breath as the two grabbed her and put some sample makeup on their friend. Coughing Tatsuki tried to get away from all of the toxins by wriggling. Her antics were in vain though, for Ishida now had a hold of her, courtesy of Chizuru's threats.

While all of the chaos was ensuing, Rukia made her escape back out into the mall and was running away from Niwa. He was closing in on her at a dangerous speed and if she didn't find a place to hide, he would certainly catch her. She skidded to a halt as she looked from left to right, but her few minutes hesitation allowed him to grab her by the wrists and drag her just outside of the mall. Struggling against his vice like grip, Rukia was beginning to feel defeat settle in. That was until…

"Oi, baka. Let her go, or else I'm going to have to kill you," The callous voice drifted to Rukia's ears like wonderful music. Once again, he was saving her. Niwa's eyes suddenly turned to the orange-haired young man, the expression upon his face making his eye twitch.

"You again! Why do you insist upon disrupting us? Can't you see she's willing?" Niwa tried to lie to Ichigo.

"Judging by her struggle, it would seem that she does NOT wish to go anywhere with you, so why don't you just let her go, before my fist slips and breaks your jaw," the substitute shinagami threatened, his brown eyes flashing dangerously. Smirking, Niwa seemed unfazed by the threat, though he did know that it was not empty.

"I-ichigo!" Though she was angry with him, Rukia felt a sense of relief once he showed up. So she wouldn't get taken away today. Good! Slowly she looked up at what was a clear blue sky, the white clouds seeming to swirl in, blocking some of the heat from the people down below. Was it going to rain again? As she looked upon the clouds, a sense of insecurity seized her. It was as though he was watching her…those cruel brown eyes were searching over her. She felt naked, though she was certain that she had clothing on. Her soul was being exposed to him…just what was he planning? Disturbed, Rukia finally felt herself being pulled forward by Niwa, a plan formulating in his scheming mind.

"Don't think I won't give up without a fight, you arrogant bastard!" The blacked haired young man yelled back to Ichigo over his shoulder. Clenching his fists, Ichigo began to chase, but for some reason, he just could not catch up to them, even WITH his abnormal speed. No matter how hard he exerted himself, he found himself the same distance, if not a little further from his targets than before. Had he gotten so fat and out of shape in only one day? His trained eyes never left Rukia, an inexorable need to protect her beginning to cleave at his insides. Slowly but surely, something was shattering the rift that he had put up so that himself and his inverted self would not once again clash.

Darting into a deserted alleyway, Niwa placed Rukia behind him and went to oppose his emulator, who was right behind them. Not even breathing hard, Ichigo stood up straight, noticing that there was no one there, save for the three. Forgotten garbage filled the humid air with an unpleasant smell, which began to make Rukia cough. How could a world so beautiful be so dirty?

"Now that it's just you and me, bitch, how about we get started?" Ichigo growled as he brought his fists up, the muscles in his arms rippling a little as he moved.

"Going to fight me with your bare hands? HAHAHA! Don't make me laugh! You have no idea what I can do. Watch and learn!" Niwa growled out as a sudden gale issued from his body, the swirling offal and dust obscuring him from view. Yowls of pain and anguish echoed from the center of the wind tube as sickening cracks and snaps were heard, as though Niwa's bones were breaking and reassembling themselves in different places. Rukia threw her arms up to shield her eyes from the violent wind, her footing beginning to get lost. As soon as she thought that she was going to be blown away, the wind stopped, the dust slowly settling back down to the ground.

Niwa stood slightly slumped over, but his appearance had changed…very drastically. What had been regular blue shorts and a black tank top was now a black and white kimono. Upon his feet were sandals, the grass shoes seemed to come right out of a museum themselves. At his hip was a katana, the sleek blade long and slender. Slowly, he looked up, for his face had been shrouded in shadow. Shocked, Ichigo saw the mask of a hallow in front of him. What was this abomination? He was neither shinagami OR hallow!

Silently, the two stood shocked as the young human man stood up straight and pulled his zanpaktou, the blood red steel scintillating dangerously in the sun light. "How lucky I am! A man saw my defeat yesterday and offered me more power to obtain what I wanted! HA! Now, face me you powerless shit!" Niwa suddenly launched himself at Ichigo, his zanpaktou thirsting for his blood. Shocked, Ichigo stood motionless as he watched the rapid approach of Niwa…

"ICHIGO!" Rukia yelled out in distress once she had regained her voice.

&-

Oh ho ho ho! –devilish laugh- Just thought I'd leave you all at a cliff hanger. So….what'd you all think? Good no? Oh yeah…and just thought that I'd tell you, Rukia's brother is NOT the bad guy in this fic. If you guys have seen episodes 58 and up, you would know why. Muahahaha! Man…I've gotta work in a lot of things now. –sighs- Don't worry, there will be plenty of Renji scene-age coming up. :P AHAHAHA! So unpredictable! W00t! A hallow and shinagami in one….O.O Who does THAT remind me of…hmm…muahahaha! Oh, and I did a very good job about no Author's notes in the middle! And I didn't put one at the beginning either! Yay!

Oh yeah, 10 cool points if any of you can tell me which band sings the two songs I've used so far! Let's see if anyone knows their under ground bands! Yeah! And as for advice…hmm…let me see…Never argue with an old man…especially if he's your band teacher. He'll end up hitting you over the head with either A) A huge stack of papers B) an eraser or C) He'll just call you square. O.o Well, Till Next Time, Ja ne!

Sakura….Now Middy-chan! P.O.D.

P.S. OMFG! OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG! I HAVE to tell you guys! Okay, I just witnessed a freakin' miracle! I used to have this C.D. player that I absolutely loved to pieces, when one day I dropped it on the ground. You're probably thinking, "Oh it's just the ground," right? Well…it was cement and from about 5 feet up. (note that that's about how tall my hands were at the point of the drop…only about 2 inches away from the top of my head…O.o) Well, after that it wouldn't work, right? So Chi bought me a new one, and I was all, "This thing hates me…" . And it really does because when I want it to play, it doesn't, and when I'm indifferent, it plays. Retarded cursed item! Anyways, that was about…oooh…Hey! Almost a year ago! Since it's almost my birthday once more. Moving on…so I've been dealing with this retarded CD player that won't play my awesome Techno CD's or (low and behold) David Bowie! I threw my old CD player on the ground, reluctant to get rid of it in the move, and guess what! After being stepped on by me and my nephews a billion times, IT WORKS AGAIN! AHH! THANK YOU GOD! I LOVE YOU! I was actually crying tears of joy when it started working. I called Mo up and she actually thought that a manga had suddenly appeared in my hand because of the way I was yelling OMG OMG OMFG! She asked me if I bought Immortal Rain volume 6 yet when she assumed. Then when I told her about the CD player, she totally had the anime reaction of a sweat drop. I could totally see it run down her cheek…You know you've seen too much anime when….O.o Well…I'm seriously leaving this chapter and working on 7 now! Ja! (It was a miracle!)


End file.
